namiRa: A comprehensive, manually curated database for MicroRNA expression, function, and deregulation in cancer

Area of Science:

• Genomics
• Bioinformatics
• Cancer Research

Background:

• MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are crucial regulators in human cancer pathogenesis, acting as oncogenes or tumor suppressors.
• Existing miRNA databases lack comprehensive functional analysis and comparative visualization capabilities for cancer-related data.
• Information on miRNA expression, function, and regulation in cancer is fragmented across numerous publications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop namiRa, a manually curated database consolidating miRNA expression patterns, functional roles, and regulatory interactions in human cancers.
• To provide a centralized resource for in-depth functional analysis and comparative visualization of miRNA data across diverse cancer types.
• To establish a comprehensive repository of miRNA-cancer associations based on a thorough literature review.

Main Methods:

• Manual curation of miRNA expression profiles, functional analyses (in vitro and in vivo), and regulatory networks from published literature.
• Systematic literature review to identify and extract data on miRNA-cancer associations.
• Development of a web-accessible database (https://www.namira-db.com) for data storage and retrieval.

Main Results:

• The namiRa database currently documents curated relationships between 1095 human miRNAs and 33 types of human cancers.
• Data is derived from a comprehensive analysis of 9983 published papers.
• The database includes miRNA expression profiles, detection methods, functional data, and visualized regulatory networks.

Conclusions:

• namiRa serves as a valuable, comprehensive resource for researchers studying miRNA roles in human cancers.
• The database facilitates a deeper understanding of miRNA-cancer associations and regulatory mechanisms.
• namiRa addresses the need for integrated and accessible miRNA data for cancer research.