The surge in reports describing non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) has focused attention on their possible biological roles and effects on development and disease. ncRNAs have been touted as previously uncharacterized regulators of gene expression and cellular processes, possibly working to fine-tune these functions. The sheer number of ncRNAs identified has outpaced the capacity to characterize each molecule thoroughly and to reliably establish its clinical relevance; it has, nonetheless, created excitement about their potential as molecular targets for novel therapeutic approaches to treat human disease. In this Review, we focus on one category of ncRNAs — long non-coding RNAs — and their expression, functions and molecular mechanisms in cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure. We further discuss the prospects for this specific class of ncRNAs as novel targets for the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions.

描述非编码 RNA (ncRNA) 的报告激增，人们的注意力集中在它们可能的生物学作用以及对发育和疾病的影响。ncRNA 被吹捧为以前未表征的基因表达和细胞过程的调节因子，可能致力于微调这些功能。已识别的 ncRNA 数量之多已经超出了彻底表征每个分子并可靠地确定其临床相关性的能力；尽管如此，它们作为治疗人类疾病的新型治疗方法的分子靶标的潜力令人兴奋。在这篇综述中，我们重点关注一类 ncRNA——长链非编码 RNA——及其在心脏肥大和心力衰竭中的表达、功能和分子机制。我们进一步讨论了这类特定 ncRNA 作为诊断和治疗这些疾病的新靶点的前景。