miRNA patterns in male LUSC patients - the 3-way mirror: Tissue, plasma and exosomes

Cecilia Bica ¹, Ancuta Jurj ², Antonia Harangus ³

⁰Research Center for Functional Genomics, Biomedicine and Translational Medicine, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Cluj-Napoca, 400337, Romania; Research Center for Advanced Medicine-MedFUTURE, Department of Translational Medicine, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400347 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

Translational Oncology +

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April 2, 2024

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

Three specific microRNAs (miRNAs) show altered expression in lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) tissues and plasma of male patients. These miRNAs show promise as biomarkers for early LUSC diagnosis in men.

Area Of Science

Oncology
Molecular Biology
Biomarker Discovery

Background

Lung cancer, particularly lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC), is a major global health concern.
Early diagnosis is crucial for improving patient outcomes in LUSC.
Identifying novel biomarkers for LUSC diagnosis is an ongoing research priority.

Purpose Of The Study

To evaluate the expression levels of miR-21-5p, miR-155-5p, and miR-181a-5p in LUSC tissues and plasma of male patients.
To determine if these microRNAs can serve as diagnostic biomarkers for LUSC in males.
To assess the diagnostic accuracy of a panel of these miRNAs for LUSC detection.

Main Methods

MicroRNA expression analysis in matched tumor and adjacent normal tissues from 40 male LUSC patients.
Validation of miRNA expression using the TCGA LUSC dataset (279 male samples).
Analysis of miRNA levels in plasma and plasma-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs).
Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to assess diagnostic accuracy.

Main Results

MiR-21-5p and miR-155-5p were overexpressed, while miR-181a-5p was underexpressed in LUSC tumor tissue compared to normal tissue.
These miRNA expression alterations were consistent in plasma and plasma EVs of LUSC male patients.
A combination of the three miRNAs demonstrated a high diagnostic accuracy of up to 88% for LUSC in male subjects.

Conclusions

The evaluated microRNAs (miR-21-5p, miR-155-5p, and miR-181a-5p) exhibit distinct expression patterns in LUSC.
These miRNAs are detectable in plasma and plasma EVs, suggesting their potential as non-invasive biomarkers.
The combined panel of these three miRNAs holds significant promise for the early detection of LUSC in male populations.

Keywords:

Biomarkers Extracellular vesicles Lung cancer microRNAs

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MicroRNAs

MicroRNA (miRNA) are short, regulatory RNA transcribed from introns (non-coding regions of a gene) or intergenic regions (stretches of DNA present between genes). Several processing steps are required to form biologically active, mature miRNA. The initial transcript, called primary miRNA (pri-mRNA), base-pairs with itself, forming a stem-loop structure. Within the nucleus, an endonuclease enzyme, called Drosha, shortens the stem-loop structure into hairpin-shaped pre-miRNA. After the pre-miRNA...