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MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression via binding to the 3' ends of mRNAs. MiRNAs have been associated with many cellular events ascertaining their central role in gene regulation. In order to better understand miRNAs of interest it is of utmost importance to learn about the genomic conservation of these genes.

Organisms are often exposed to environmental pressures that affect homeostasis, so it is important to understand the biological basis of stress-response. Various biological mechanisms have evolved to help cells cope with potentially cytotoxic changes in their environment. miRNAs are small non-coding RNAs which are able to regulate mRNA stability. It has been suggested that miRNAs may tip the balance between continued cytorepair and induction of apoptosis in response to stress.

Thermodynamics-based dynamic programming RNA secondary structure algorithms have been of immense importance in molecular biology, where applications range from the detection of novel selenoproteins using expressed sequence tag (EST) data, to the determination of microRNA genes and their targets. Dynamic programming algorithms have been developed to compute the minimum free energy secondary structure and partition function of a given RNA sequence, the minimum free-energy and partition function for the hybridization of two RNA molecules, etc.

MicroRNA (miRNA) sponges are RNA transcripts containing multiple high-affinity binding sites that associate with and sequester specific miRNAs to prevent them from interacting with their target messenger (m)RNAs. Due to the high specificity of miRNA sponges and strong inhibition of target miRNAs, these molecules have become increasingly applied in miRNA loss-of-function studies. However, improperly designed sponge constructs may sequester off-target miRNAs; thus, it has become increasingly important to develop a tool for miRNA sponge construct design and testing.