Switches in gene expression including microRNA and a large number of distinct mRNAs

In eukaryotic cells, the kinetics of gene expression depends on the interplay of messenger RNAs (mRNAs), proteins, and nonprotein coding RNAs, or, more specifically, microRNAs. Some microRNAs may target hundreds of mRNAs. To describe this case, the author proposes a kinetic model implying that the microRNA synthesis is suppressed by the protein produced via the translation of one of the target mRNAs. With physically reasonable model parameters, the model predicts bistability or, in other words, switches in the expression of hundreds of genes. The text was submitted by the author in English.