Integrative miRNOMe profiling reveals the miR-195-5p-CHEK1 axis and its impact on luminal breast cancer outcomes

The luminal subtype (estrogen receptor-positive, ER+) is the most common and the most heterogeneous type of breast carcinoma (BC) in women. During our study, we determined expression levels of all microRNAs (miRNome) in 101 ER+ BC samples and identified 25 miRNAs being associated with proliferative markers. Using comprehensive in silico analyses we prioritized CHEK1, CDC25A, and CCNE1 as candidate genes affecting the proliferation of ER+ BC, with two microRNAs from the miR-497∼195 cluster identified as their potential regulators. In a cohort of 217 patients, we found a significant association between high expression of CHEK1 and shorter relapse-free survival (RFS) in luminal BC patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy, especially in patients with luminal A subtype. In patients treated with neoadjuvant therapy, the opposite role for RFS was observed for hsa-miR-195-5p. Subsequently, we confirmed the potency of hsa-miR-195-5p to inhibit the expression of CHEK1 in vitro. Moreover, the specific Chk1 inhibitor rabusertib (LY2603618) significantly enhanced the efficacy of doxorubicin in both ER+ and ER- cell lines. In summary, we have identified the association of a specific miRNA profile with highly proliferative luminal BCs and demonstrated the ability of hsa-miR-195-5p to inhibit CHEK1 expression in BC in vitro, underlining the importance of CHEK1 expression and its inhibition for prognosis and treatment of patients with luminal BCs.