Figure 1
From: MicroRNAs and hepatitis C virus: Toward the end of miR-122 supremacy
Canonical miRNA biogenesis and function. miRNAs are transcribed as capped and polyadenylated primary transcripts (pri-miRNAs) containing a hairpin structure that is excised by the endonuclease Drosha. This liberated stem-loop (pre-miRNA) is transported to the cytoplasm by exportin 5 to be processed by the Dicer endonuclease. RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) selectively handles one strand of the resulting duplex and triggers target mRNA silencing through cleavage or translational repression