RNase L-gene

The RNase L gene, RNASEL (chromosome1q25.3) is a protein-coding gene that encodes a component of the interferon-regulated 2-5A system (ribonuclease L), which plays a role in the antiviral and antiproliferative roles of interferons. Ribonuclease L is an enzyme that is activated only under viral infection.

Numerous studies have investigated the association between RNASEL gene polymorphisms (rs486907 G>A and rs627928 T>G) and the risk of developing prostate cancer. However, many of the results are controversial. A recently published meta-analysis (23 articles with 40 studies) rs486907could not confirm this association (Xia Jet al. 2019). Heterozygous germline mutations have been associated with hereditary prostate cancer-1 (HPC1). (Carpten J et al 2002; Cher M L et al 1996). Subsequent studies have not confirmed this association (Daugherty SE et al 2007). Diseases associated with RNASEL include "chronic fatigue syndrome".

1. Banerjee S et al. (2014) Cell-type-specific effects of RNase L on viral induction of beta interferon. mBio 5:e00856-14.
2. Birdwell LD et al (2016) Activation of RNase L by Murine Coronavirus in Myeloid Cells Is Dependent on Basal Oas Gene Expression and Independent of Virus-Induced Interferon. J Virol 90:3160-3172.
3. Carpten J et al (2002) Germline mutations in the ribonuclease L gene in families showing linkage with HPC1. Nature Genet 30: 181-184
4. Cher M L et al (1996) Genetic alterations in untreated metastases and androgen-independent prostate cancer detected by comparative genomic hybridization and allelotyping. Cancer Res 56: 3091-3102
5. Daugherty SE et al (2007) RNASEL Arg462Gln polymorphism and prostate cancer in PLCO. Prostate 67:849-854.
6. Drappier M et al (2014) The OAS/RNaseL pathway and its inhibition by viruses. Virology (Montrouge) 18:264-277.
7. Xia J et al. (2019) Evidence from 40 Studies that 2 Common Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) of RNASEL Gene Affect Prostate Cancer Susceptibility: A Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)-Compliant Meta-Analysis. Med Sci Monit 25:8315-8325.