Regulus Therapeutics has announces the publication of new research in the Journal of Virology on the role of microRNAs in regulating pathways of viral infection. The research was performed in collaboration with the Max von Pettenkofer Institute for Virology in Munich, Germany and the National Center for Scientific Research in Strasbourg, France.

microRNAs are small non-coding RNAs expressed in mammalian genomes and certain viral genomes and are believed to regulate whole networks of genes that can be involved in discrete disease processes.

The new findings add to a growing body of research demonstrating that certain viral microRNAs play a role in the viral life cycle, likely by regulating host gene expression, and suggest that microRNA therapeutics that target specific viral microRNAs could provide a novel approach for anti-viral medicines.

"Our new research is an important step forward in understanding the broad biological roles for microRNAs in health and disease, particularly the role of viral microRNAs in regulating the expression of host genes that might otherwise limit the severity of a viral infection," said Juergen Soutschek, Ph.D., Senior Director of Scientific Development for Regulus.

"The publication of these new results is representative of Regulus' strategy to collaborate with leading academic groups in the area of microRNA biology, and this research is another example of the role microRNA therapeutics may play in treating disease," Soutschek said.