Circular RNAs: splicing’s enigma variations

Circular RNAs are a large class of animal RNAs with regulatory potency

Memczak, S., Jens, M., Elefsinioti, A., Torti, F., Krueger, J., Rybak, A., Maier, L., Mackowiak, S. D., Gregersen, L. H., Munschauer, M., et al. (2013) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature11928 · Cited by 7,990

Natural RNA circles function as efficient microRNA sponges

Hansen, T. B., Jensen, T. I., Clausen, B. H., Bramsen, J. B., Finsen, B., Damgaard, C. K., & Kjems, J. (2013) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature11993 · Cited by 7,985

Circular RNAs are abundant, conserved, and associated with ALU repeats

Jeck, W. R., Sorrentino, J. A., Wang, K., Slevin, M. K., Burd, C. E., Liu, J., Marzluff, W. F., & Sharpless, N. E. (2013) · RNA · doi:10.1261/rna.035667.112 · Cited by 4,388

Circular RNAs Are the Predominant Transcript Isoform from Hundreds of Human Genes in Diverse Cell Types

Salzman, J., Gawad, C., Wang, P. L., Lacayo, N., & Brown, P. O. (2012) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0030733 · Cited by 2,239

Insights into RNA Biology from an Atlas of Mammalian mRNA-Binding Proteins

Castello, A., Fischer, B., Eichelbaum, K., Horos, R., Beckmann, B. M., Strein, C., Davey, N. E., Humphreys, D. T., Preiss, T., Steinmetz, L. M., et al. (2012) · Cell · doi:10.1016/j.cell.2012.04.031 · Cited by 2,132

Circular transcripts of the testis-determining gene Sry in adult mouse testis

Capel, B., Swain, A., Nicolis, S. K., Hacker, A., Walter, M. A., Koopman, P. A., Goodfellow, P. N., & Lovell-Badge, R. H. (1993) · Cell · doi:10.1016/0092-8674(93)90279-y · Cited by 1,112

miRNA‐dependent gene silencing involving Ago2‐mediated cleavage of a circular antisense RNA

Hansen, T. B., Wiklund, E. D., Bramsen, J. B., Villadsen, S. B., Statham, A. L., Clark, S. J., & Kjems, J. (2011) · The EMBO Journal · doi:10.1038/emboj.2011.359 · Cited by 996

Initiation of Protein Synthesis by the Eukaryotic Translational Apparatus on Circular RNAs

Chen, C.-Y., & Sarnow, P. (1995) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.7536344 · Cited by 766

Emerging Roles for Natural MicroRNA Sponges

Ebert, M. S., & Sharp, P. A. (2010) · Current Biology · doi:10.1016/j.cub.2010.08.052 · Cited by 490

Targeted RNA sequencing reveals the deep complexity of the human transcriptome

Mercer, T. R., Gerhardt, D. J., Dinger, M. E., Crawford, J., Trapnell, C., Jeddeloh, J. A., Mattick, J. S., & Rinn, J. L. (2011) · Nature Biotechnology · doi:10.1038/nbt.2024 · Cited by 490

Genes, Behavior, and Next-Generation Sequencing

HITZEMANN, R. J., Darakjian, P., Oberbeck, D. L., ZHENG, C. L., Walter, N., Iancu, O. D., Searles, R. P., Harrington, C. A., & McWeeney, S. K. (2018) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-804078-2.00013-1 · Cited by 1

circAPLP2 promotes colorectal cancer progression by upregulating HELLS by targeting miR-335-5p

Xiang, R. H., Feng, M., Zhou, X., Ma, L., & Dong, N. (2021) · Open Medicine · doi:10.1515/med-2021-0229 · Cited by 1

Profiling Circular RNAs of the Human Dorsal Root Ganglia Reveals circNTRK2 is Modulated by Opioid Exposure

Koch, M. R., Demeter, J., Hochrein, M., Alles, S. R. A., Westlund, K. N., Ehsanian, R., & de la Peña, J. B. (2026) · Journal of Pain · doi:10.1016/j.jpain.2025.105933 · Cited by 1

Theoretical model of circular RNA prediction and classification

Kumar, R., Lahiri, T., & Kumar, G. (2016) · International Conference on Bioinformatics and Systems Biology (BSB) · doi:10.1109/bsb.2016.7552122 · Cited by 1

Circular RNAs in Human Health and Disease

Grouse, L., Curry‐Hyde, A., Chen, B. J., & Janitz, M. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-13-8958-0_5 · Cited by 1

The Expression Pattern and Clinicopathological Importance of Hsa_circ_000425 in Colorectal Cancer.

Mohammadi, D., Bastani, A., Zafari, Y., Esmaealzadeh, S., Rastgou, N., Bargahi, M., & Moghbelinejad, S. (2020) · PubMed Central · doi:10.22088/ijmcm.bums.9.4.266 · Cited by 1

Revolution in Genetics

Pollock, J. D., Lossie, A. C., & Little, A. R. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-88832-9_145 · Cited by 1

‘Knockout-first’ mouse model as a biological tool to study the role of KIAA0182 gene in hypoplastic left heart syndrome

Alnour, F. (2016) · eDiss (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen) · doi:10.53846/goediss-5543 · Cited by 1

Titin Forms Circles

Jaé, N., & Dimmeler, S. (2016) · Circulation Research · doi:10.1161/circresaha.116.309795 · Cited by 1

Functions of Circular RNAs in the Research of Reproductive and Developmental Medicine

Du, J., Liu, J., Qian, Y., Zhang, Z., Pi, L., & Xu, J. (2017) · Reproductive and Developmental Medicine · doi:10.4103/2096-2924.224212

Peer Review #1 of "Circular RNAs as potential biomarkers and therapeutics for cardiovascular disease (v0.1)"

(2019) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.6831v0.1/reviews/1

Peer Review #1 of "Circular RNAs as potential biomarkers and therapeutics for cardiovascular disease (v0.2)"

(2019) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.6831v0.2/reviews/1

MikroRNA’lar ve Atlarda MikroRNA’lar ile İlgili Yapılan Çalışmalar

Ekici, S., & Özmen, Ö. (2016) · Etlik Veteriner Mikrobiyoloji Dergisi · doi:10.35864/evmd.514179

Differentially Expressed Circular RNAs in Stenosed Arteriovenous Fistula Tissues of Uremia PatientsPreprint

Lan, L., Liu, Y., Zou, M., Xie, Y., Zhang, Y., Tian, L., Xiao, J., Liu, Y., Zhang, L., & Yan, Y. (2021) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-864648/v1

The Revolution in Genetic Sequencing and Analysis

Pollock, J. D., & Little, A. R. (2016) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-3474-4_145

Peer Review #2 of "Circular RNAs as potential biomarkers and therapeutics for cardiovascular disease (v0.2)"

(2019) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.6831v0.2/reviews/2

Peer Review #2 of "Circular RNAs as potential biomarkers and therapeutics for cardiovascular disease (v0.1)"

(2019) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.6831v0.1/reviews/2

Discussion

Jens, M. (2014) · Springer theses · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-07082-7_6

Peer Review #2 of "A comprehensive review of circRNA: from purification and identification to disease marker potential (v0.1)"

(2018) · PeerJ · doi:10.7287/peerj.5503v0.1/reviews/2

Revolution in Genetics

Pollock, J. D., Lossie, A. C., & Little, A. R. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-6434-1_145-2

Non-Coding Ribonucleic Acids as Regulators of Ferroptosis in Cancer

Gong, Y. Y., Lv, Y., Xiu, Y., Zhang, X., Liu, Z., Deng, L., & Lu, Y. (2022) · Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences · doi:10.36468/pharmaceutical-sciences.spl.498

Functional Engineering of Synthetic RNA Through Circularization

Abe, H. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-16-1313-5_65-1

A Summary of Circular RNAs in Alzheimer's Disease

Xiao, R., Wu, H., & Chen, K. (2021) · Journal of Neurological Research And Therapy · doi:10.14302/issn.2470-5020.jnrt-20-3619

Characterizations of Unusual Peptides Encoded by Circular RNAs and their Possible Involvements in Human Diseases

Biswas, A., Chowdhury, N., & Bagchi, A. (2022) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences India Section B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1007/s40011-022-01438-z

Functional Engineering of Synthetic RNA Through Circularization

Abe, H. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-19-9776-1_65

PCPI: Prediction of circRNA and Protein Interaction Using Machine Learning Method

Hossain, M. T., Reza, M. S., Li, X., Peng, Y., Feng, S., & Wei, Y. (2023) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-981-99-7074-2_8

Additional file 1 of Screening differential circular RNAs expression profiles in Vulvar Lichen Sclerosus

Yang, M., Sun, K., & Chang, J. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.20418093

Conditional Knockdown of Endogenous MicroRNAs in CHO Cells Using TET-ON-SanDI Sponge Vectors

Costello, A., Lao, N. T., CLYNES, M. M., & Barron, N. (2024) · Methods in molecular biology · doi:10.1007/978-1-0716-4104-0_6

The Role of Hsa_circ_0087862/miR-149-5p/TRAF6 Regulatory Axis in Colorectal Cancer Progression

Xu, Q., Xu, Y., Yang, T., Tang, Y., & Yang, Q. (2025) · Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology · doi:10.1007/s12010-025-05283-4

CircSLC7A5 upregulates NRD1 by competing with miR-148a-3p to promote progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinomaPreprint

Zhuang, Z., Huang, Y., Yi, H., Tu, Y., Xiao, J., Feng, Z., Li, X., & Liu, B. (2025) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-6670524/v1

COVID-19 in comorbid chronic diseased patients, pregnant and lactating women: pathophysiology, available drug treatment, and the most suitable protocol regimen in each group

Mohamed, H., Elkholy, Y. Y., Mokhtar, Y. M., Orady, M. A., Elmetwaly, H. S., Abdelwahab, H. M., Abdelrady, Y. S., Elgohary, M., & ElMahdy, M. K. (2025) · Inflammopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s10787-025-01829-4

A Hybrid Deep Neural Network Utilizing Graph Convolution for the Prediction of CircRNA-RBP Interaction

Tang, G., Li, J., Yao, D., Zhan, X., & Li, X. (2025) · Current Bioinformatics · doi:10.2174/0115748936393849250830080429

CircP4HA3/miR-5001-5p/THBS2 axis promotes chondrocyte senescence and cartilage degradation during osteoarthritis progression

Tang, L., 郭鹏超, Zou, Y., Ran, J., Wu, L., & Moqbel, S. A. A. (2025) · International Immunopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.intimp.2025.115729

Additional file 1 of N6-methyladenosine-modified CircRNA-SORE sustains sorafenib resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating β-catenin signaling

Xu, J., Wan, Z., Tang, M., Lin, Z., Jiang, S., Ji, L., Gorshkov, K., Mao, Q., Xia, S., Cen, D., et al. (2020) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.13272085

Additional file 1 of The circSPON2/miR-331-3p axis regulates PRMT5, an epigenetic regulator of CAMK2N1 transcription and prostate cancer progression

Yao, B., Zhu, S., Wei, X., Chen, M.-K., Feng, Y., Li, Z., Xu, X., Zhang, Y., Wang, Y., Zhou, J., et al. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.19914948

Additional file 1 of CircRNAs and their regulatory roles in cancers

Tao, M., Zheng, M., Xu, Y., Ma, S., Zhang, W., & Ju, S. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.16456929

Additional file 1 of Circular RNAs in body fluids as cancer biomarkers: the new frontier of liquid biopsies

Wang, S., Zhang, K., Tan, S., Xin, J., Yuan, Q., Xu, H., Xu, X., Liang, Q., Christiani, D. C., Wang, M., et al. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.13560016

Prognostic Value of Circular RNAs in Digestive System Malignancies: Evidence From a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Shams, F., Arjmand, M.-H., Zahiri, E., & Mehrad‐Majd, H. (2025) · Journal of Advances in Medical and Biomedical Research · doi:10.30699/jambr.33.159.249

Non-coding RNAs

Kumar, M. B. S. P., Prasad, K. V., & Nakka, V. P. (2026) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-443-27765-8.00015-1

Rôle des miARN dans la régulation des fonctions plaquettaires

Dréano, E. (2016) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/7f34ffbbz8891z466bzacaez75b277e21002

Mécanismes moléculaires à l'origine de la dysautonomie familiale

Hervé, M. (2016) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/6564ee49z2810z4387zb80azee2206033835

La séquestration de microARN dans le mélanome métastatique : du mécanisme moléculaire au candidat thérapeutique

Migault, M. (2017) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/55b7d871z6f9fz4039zaa17zaa0e82d57845

The Small Chemical Compound Repsox Potentiates Oct4-Driven Astrocyte-to-Neural Stem Cell Reprogramming via Notch1/Hes1/Smurf2 Pathway

Ma, X., Liu, Z., He, Y., Zhang, D., Deng, P., Li, L., Li, X., Li, J., Ma, Q., & Yang, H. (2026) · Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology · doi:10.1007/s10571-026-01731-9

The circFAT1-encoded protein promotes colorectal cancer progression via DDX17 interaction and β-catenin nuclear translocation

Xu, J., Chen, B., Zhao, J., Zhang, H., Wang, Z., Huang, S., & Li, Y. (2026) · International Journal of Biological Macromolecules · doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2026.152563

Characterization of the circular RNA landscape of human dorsal root ganglia reveals a neurotrophin-related circRNA is modulated by opioid exposure

Koch, M. R., Demeter, J. B., Hochrein, M., Alles, S. R. A., Westlund, K. N., Ehsanian, R., & de la Peña, J. B. (2026) · Pain · doi:10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003987

Beyond linear transcripts: circular RNAs as sentinels of opioid-induced maladaptation in human nociceptors

Rodríguez-Palma, E. J., & Khanna, R. (2026) · Pain · doi:10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003988

Black Seed Derivative Thymoquinone Suppresses Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Associated Oncogenic circRNAs: A Pilot Study

Muqbil, I., Uddin, M. H., Bao, B., Wan, Y., Shi, Y., & Mohammad, R. M. (2026) · Natural Product Communications · doi:10.1177/1934578x261471619

Novel Screening and Early Detection Strategies in Breast Cancer

El-Ella, D. M. A., Samreen, B., Shanbhag, N. M., & Raza, A. (2026) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-92-5842-0_3

Metal-ion coordination drives active-site remodeling for backsplicing in circularly permuted group II introns

Zhang, J., Yao, Y., & Ma, J. (2026) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gkag1053

Circular logic: understanding RNA’s strangest form yet

Dance, A. (2024) · Nature · doi:10.1038/d41586-024-03683-w · Cited by 20

Visualization of circular RNAs and their internal splicing events from transcriptomic data

Zheng, Y., & Zhao, F. (2020) · Bioinformatics · doi:10.1093/bioinformatics/btaa033 · Cited by 18

Methods for Annotation and Validation of Circular RNAs from RNAseq Data

Sharma, D., Sehgal, P., Hariprakash, J. M., Sivasubbu, S., & Scaria, V. (2019) · Methods in molecular biology · doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-8982-9_3 · Cited by 12

Circular RNAs as a New Field in Gene Regulation and their Implications in Translational Research

Vidal, A. F., Sandoval, G. T., de Magalhães, L. L., Santos, S. E., & Ribeiro‐dos‐Santos, Â. (2016) · Epigenomics · doi:10.2217/epi.16.3 · Cited by 41

A guide to naming eukaryotic circular RNAs

Chen, L., Bindereif, A., Bozzoni, I., Chang, H. Y., Matera, A. G., Gorospe, M., Hansen, T. B., Kjems, J., Ma, X.-K., Pek, J. W., et al. (2023) · Nature Cell Biology · doi:10.1038/s41556-022-01066-9 · Cited by 121