from Meaghan H. Hancock, Igor Landais, Lauren M. Hook, Finn Grey, Rebecca Tirabassi and Jay A. Nelson writing in Cytomegaloviruses: From Molecular Pathogenesis to Intervention:
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) represent an important class of small regulatory RNAs regulate cellular processes including development and malignancies. Since the discovery that viruses encode miRNAs over 240 viral miRNAs have been identified primarily in the herpesvirus family. The cytomegalovirus (CMV) family encodes multiple miRNAs encoded throughout the viral genome. Recent work has shown that the CMV miRNAs regulate expression of both viral and cellular genes including the CMV immediate early gene 1 (IE1) and cellular genes involved in immune recognition and cell cycle regulation. In this paper we will review our current knowledge of the targets and function of CMV encoded miRNAs.
Further reading: Cytomegaloviruses: From Molecular Pathogenesis to Intervention