Transcriptome Analysis Identified 2 New lncRNAs Associated with the Metastasis of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

Papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) is a specific subgroup of papillary thyroid carcinoma and defined with the dimension ≤1 cm by the WHO. Although it shows a relatively high 10-year livability, the metastasis of PTMC into other tissues and organs seriously affects the daily life of patients with relatively high mortality. Therefore, the genetic basis for the metastasis of PTMC needs to be explored for effective therapeutic targets. Here, we conducted a series of comparative analysis of the transcriptional expression profile between PTMC patients with and without lymph node metastasis.

Gene expression profile and gene function were analyzed using RNA extracted from pathological tissues of 12 patients with PTMC, and the core biomarkers closely related to its metastasis were identified.

Our results showed that 7,507 genes and 42 RNAs showed remarkably different expression patterns. More sophisticated analysis showed that the high expression of 2 lncRNAs (T077499 and T004533) resulted in the metastasis of PTMC, which suggests that the expression pattern of the 2 lncRNAs may act as a potential biomarker for pathogenesis and prognosis of PTMC metastasis.

Our findings preliminarily reveal the molecular mechanisms for PTMC metastasis, which will provide vital reference for subsequent studies about the genetic basis and molecular targeted therapy for PTMC metastasis.