Circular RNAs in Endometriosis: from Expression Pattern To Pathogenesis

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This paper explores the expression patterns of circular RNAs in endometriosis and their potential roles in the pathogenesis of the disease.

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This paper is a review that examines alterations in circular RNA (circRNA) expression in women with endometriosis and outlines potential mechanisms by which circRNAs may contribute to disease pathogenesis, including regulation of microRNA abundance, post-transcriptional effects, and possible roles in protein translation. It synthesizes evidence linking circRNAs to inflammatory and estrogen-dependent endometrial cell migration and growth, and discusses their potential as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic agents. The review also provides a mechanistic framework for how circRNAs might function within competing endogenous RNA networks and related regulatory pathways. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it focuses on circular RNAs from expression patterns to proposed pathogenic mechanisms and related biomarker/therapeutic potential.

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Abstract

Endometriosis is a developing inflammatory disorder, which arises from the migration and aberrant growth of endometrial cells in extrauterine areas in an estrogen-dependent fashion, representing an approximate prevalence of 15% among menstruating women. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) account for a special subtype of endogenous non-coding RNAs that act as significant regulators of numerous biological activities by controlling the abundance of cellular microRNAs, getting involved in post-transcriptional modifications, and contributing to protein translation. In this review, we summarized available evidence on alterations of circRNA expression in women with endometriosis, as well as elaborated on the mechanistic processes by which circRNAs participate in the pathogenesis of endometriosis, throwing the spotlight on the significance of circRNAs as possible diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic agents. Similar content being viewed by others Data Availability No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

References

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Writing - Original Draft; X.W. Conceptualization, Writing - Review & Editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. The authors confirm that no paper mill and artificial intelligence was used.” Corresponding author Ethics declarations Conflict of Interest The authors declare no competing interests. Additional information Publisher’s Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Rights and permissions Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law. About this article Cite this article Qiu, S., Zhu, J. & Wen, X. Circular RNAs in Endometriosis: from Expression Pattern To Pathogenesis. Cell Biochem Biophys 84, 211–224 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12013-025-01904-1 Accepted: Published: Version of record: Issue date: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12013-025-01904-1

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