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Updated: Mar 15, 2026
miRNA Expression Analyses in Prostate Cancer Clinical Tissues
Published on: September 8, 2015
MiR-139-5p is Increased in the Peripheral Blood of Patients with Prostate Cancer
Cheng Pang1, Ming Liu, Weiwei Fang
1Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Background:
Emerging evidence suggested that microRNAs (miRNAs) play a causal role in cancer tumorigenesis. Aberrant expression of miRNA (miR)-139-5p has been observed in various types of cancers. The present study evaluated the relationship between miR-139-5p expression levels and prostate cancer (PCa), to assess the feasibility of using peripheral blood miR-139-5p as a potential non-invasive biomarker for PCa.
Methods:
Total RNA was extracted from peripheral whole blood samples from 45 PCa patients, 45 benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients and 50 healthy controls (HC). The expression of miR-139-5p was assessed by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction.
Results:
MiR-139-5p in peripheral blood was significantly higher in PCa patients than in patients with BPH and HC individuals (P<0.001). Higher miR-139-5p expression was observed to be associated with certain clinicopathological parameters, including PSA>20ng/ml (P<0.05), pathological tumor stage 3/4 (P<0.05) and Gleason score >7 (P<0.01). A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis revealed that miR-139-5p distinguished PCa patients from BPH patients [area under the curve (AUC), 0.936; 95% CI, 0.878-0.993; P<0.001].
Conclusions:
Peripheral blood miR-139-5p may be utilized as a potential novel non-invasive biomarker for PCa screening.
Insights
Peripheral blood miR-139-5p is significantly elevated in prostate cancer (PCa) patients. This microRNA shows potential as a novel, non-invasive biomarker for PCa screening.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Molecular Biology
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are implicated in cancer development.
- Aberrant expression of miR-139-5p is noted across various cancers.
- Prostate cancer (PCa) diagnosis can benefit from novel biomarkers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between miR-139-5p expression and PCa.
- To evaluate miR-139-5p in peripheral blood as a potential non-invasive PCa biomarker.
Main Methods:
- Collected peripheral whole blood from 45 PCa patients, 45 benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients, and 50 healthy controls (HC).
- Quantified miR-139-5p expression using reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR).
Main Results:
- miR-139-5p levels were significantly higher in PCa patients compared to BPH patients and HC (P<0.001).
- Elevated miR-139-5p correlated with higher PSA levels, advanced tumor stage (3/4), and Gleason score (>7).
- Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed high accuracy in distinguishing PCa from BPH (AUC=0.936).
Conclusions:
- Peripheral blood miR-139-5p may serve as a novel non-invasive biomarker for PCa screening.
- This finding supports the potential utility of miR-139-5p in early PCa detection.
