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The discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) as novel regulators of gene expression has led to a marked change in how gene regulation is viewed, with important implications for development and disease. MiRNAs are endogenous, small, noncoding RNAs that largely repress their target mRNAs post-transcriptionally. The regulation of gene expression by miRNAs represents an evolutionarily conserved mechanism that is broadly applicable to most biological processes. Recent studies have begun to define the role of miRNAs in different cell lineages during kidney development, and to implicate specific miRNAs in developmental and pathophysiological processes in the kidney. This review will focus on novel insights into the role(s) of miRNAs in kidney development, and discuss the implications for pediatric renal disease. Keywords microRNAs * Kidney development * Dicer, Introduction The initial discovery that a small regulatory RNA could specifically silence the function of a gene in the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans [1], has subsequently led to revolutionary changes in [...]

The 12th International Workshop on Developmental Nephrology was held at the University of Edinburgh on June 24-26, 2013. The meeting was organized by Jordan Kreidberg (Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard [...]