MiR-203 promotes the growth and migration of ovarian cancer cells by enhancing glycolytic pathway

MicroRNA Expression Profiles in Human Samples and Cell Lines Revealed Nine miRNAs Associated with Cisplatin Resistance in High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer

Metastasis and drug resistance are major contributors to cancer-related fatalities worldwide. In ovarian cancer (OC), a staggering 70% develop resistance to the front-line therapy, cisplatin. Despite proposed mechanisms, the molecular events driving cisplatin resistance remain unclear. Dysregulated microRNAs (miRNAs) play a role in OC initiation, progression, and chemoresistance, yet few studies have compared miRNA expression in OC samples and cell lines. This study aimed to identify key miRNAs involved in the cisplatin resistance of high-grade-serous-ovarian-cancer (HGSOC), the most common gynecological malignancy. MiRNA expression profiles were conducted on RNA isolated from formalin-fixed-paraffin-embedded human ovarian tumor samples and HGSOC cell lines. Nine miRNAs were identified in both sample types. Targeting these with oligonucleotide miRNA inhibitors (OMIs) reduced proliferation by more than 50% for miR-203a, miR-96-5p, miR-10a-5p, miR-141-3p, miR-200c-3p, miR-182-5p, miR-183-5p, and miR-1206. OMIs significantly reduced migration for miR-183-5p, miR-203a, miR-296-5p, and miR-1206. Molecular pathway analysis revealed that the nine miRNAs regulate pathways associated with proliferation, invasion, and chemoresistance through PTEN, ZEB1, FOXO1, and SNAI2. High expression of miR-1206, miR-10a-5p, miR-141-3p, and miR-96-5p correlated with poor prognosis in OC patients according to the KM plotter database. These nine miRNAs could be used as targets for therapy and as markers of cisplatin response.

Metformin Increases the Response of Cholangiocarcinoma Cells to Gemcitabine by Suppressing Pyruvate Kinase M2 to Activate Mitochondrial Apoptosis

BACKGROUND

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a malignant tumor with a high mortality rate. Resistance to chemotherapy remains a major challenge related to cancer treatment, and increasing the sensitivity of cancer cells to therapeutic drugs is a major focus of cancer treatment.

AIMS

We purposed to explore the role of Metformin in CCA involved in chemotherapeutic sensitivity and Pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) through regulating mitochondrial apoptosis in the present study.

METHODS

CCA cell lines of HCC9810 and RBE were treated with Metformin companied with antagonists or agonists of PKM2, cells sensitivity to Gemcitabine, cell migration and invasion along with apoptosis, which is mediated by JC-1 and LDH were assayed.

RESULTS

Our results indicated that Metformin and Gemcitabine exhibit synergistic effect on inhibition of cholangiocarcinoma cell viability, cell migration and invasion as well as promotion apoptosis of cholangiocarcinoma cells. In vivo, Metformin combined with Gemcitabine has cooperation in inhibiting the growth of cholangiocarcinoma cell-derived tumors. Moreover, Metformin and Gemcitabine inhibited expression of PKM2 and PDHB in HCC9810 and RBE.

CONCLUSION

Our study suggested that Metformin may increase the response of cholangiocarcinoma cells to Gemcitabine by suppressing PKM2 to activate mitochondrial apoptosis.

Interplay between LncRNA/miRNA and TGF-β Signaling in the Tumorigenesis of Gynecological Cancer

Gynecologic cancers are among the most common malignancies with aggressive features and poor prognosis. Tumorigenesis in gynecologic cancers is a complicated process that is influenced by multiple factors, including genetic mutations that activate various oncogenic signaling pathways, including the TGF-β pathway. Aberrant activation of TGF-β signaling is correlated with tumor recurrence and metastasis. It has been shown that non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have crucial effects on cancer cell proliferation, migration, and metastasis. Upregulation of various ncRNAs, including long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) and microRNAs (miRNAs), has been reported in several tumors, like cervical, ovarian, and endometrial cancers, but their cellular mechanisms remain to be investigated. Thus, recognizing the role of ncRNAs in regulating the TGF-β pathway may provide novel strategies for better treatment of cancer patients. The present study summarizes recent findings on the role of ncRNAs in regulating the TGF-β signaling involved in tumor progression and metastasis in gynecologic cancers.

MiR-19a-3p Promotes Aerobic Glycolysis in Ovarian Cancer Cells via IGFBP3/PI3K/AKT Pathway

Aerobic glycolysis is a prominent feature of cancer. Here, we reported that miR-19a-3p promotes aerobic glycolysis in ovarian cancer cells SKVO3 and ES-2 by increased production of ATP, lactic acid, extracellular acidification (ECAR), and increased expression of PKM2, LDHA, GLUT1 and GLUT3. Further study showed that over-expression of IGFBP3, the target of miR-19a-3p, decreases aerobic glycolysis in ovarian cancer cells, while knockdown of IGFBP3 expression increases aerobic glycolysis. The rescue assay suggested that miR-19a-3p promotes aerobic glycolysis in ovarian cancer cells through targeting IGFBP3. Moreover, over-expression of miR-19a-3p or silencing of IGFBP3 expression promoted activation of AKT, which is important for aerobic glycolysis in cancer cells, indicating that miR-19a-3p promotes aerobic glycolysis in ovarian cancer cells through the IGFBP3/PI3K/AKT pathway. This suggests that miR-19a-3p and IGFBP3 may serve as potential treatment targets of ovarian cancer.

A diagnostic miRNA panel to detect recurrence of ovarian cancer through artificial intelligence approaches

BACKGROUND

Ovarian Cancer (OC) is the deadliest gynecology malignancy, whose high recurrence rate in OC patients is a challenging object. Therefore, having deep insights into the genetic and molecular mechanisms of OC recurrence can improve the target therapeutic procedures. This study aimed to discover crucial miRNAs for the detection of tumor recurrence in OC by artificial intelligence approaches.

METHOD

Through the ANOVA feature selection method, we selected 100 candidate miRNAs among 588 miRNAs. For their classification, a deep-learning model was employed to validate the significance of the candidate miRNAs. The accuracy, F1-score (high-risk), and AUC-ROC of classification test data based on the 100 miRNAs were 73%, 0.81, and 0.65, respectively. Association rule mining was used to discover hidden relations among the selected miRNAs.

RESULT

Five miRNAs, including miR-1914, miR-203, miR-135a-2, miR-149, and miR-9-1, were identified as the most frequent items among high-risk association rules. The identified miRNAs may target genes/proteins involved in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), resistance to therapy, and cancer stem cells; being responsible for the heterogeneity and plasticity of the tumor. Our conclusion presents mir-1914 as the significant candidate miRNA and the most frequent item. Current knowledge indicates that the dysregulated miR-1914 may function as a tumor suppressor or oncogene in the development of cancer.

CONCLUSION

These candidate miRNAs can be considered a powerful tool in the diagnosis of OC recurrence. We hypothesize that mir-1914 might open a new line of research in the realm of managing the recurrence of OC and could be a significant factor in triggering OC recurrence.

Reduced CircSMOC1 Level Promotes Metabolic Reprogramming via PTBP1 (Polypyrimidine Tract-Binding Protein) and miR-329-3p in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Rats

BACKGROUND

Pulmonary arterial hypertension maintains rapid cell proliferation and vascular remodeling through metabolic reprogramming. Recent studies suggested that circRNAs play important role in pulmonary vascular remodeling and pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells proliferation. However, the relationship between circRNA, cell proliferation, and metabolic reprogramming in pulmonary arterial hypertension has not been investigated.

METHODS

RNA-seq and qRT-PCR reveal the differential expression profile of circRNA in pulmonary arteries of pulmonary arterial hypertension rat models. Transfection was used to examine the effects of circSMOC1 on pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells, and the roles of circSMOC1 in vivo were investigated by adenoassociated virus. Mass spectrometry, RNA pull-down, RNA immunoprecipitation, and dual-luciferase reporter assay were performed to investigate the signaling pathway of circSMOC1 regulating the metabolic reprogramming.

RESULTS

CircSMOC1 was significantly downregulated in pulmonary arteries of pulmonary arterial hypertension rats. CircSMOC1 knockdown promoted proliferation and migration and enhanced aerobic glycolysis of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. CircSMOC1 overexpression in vivo alleviates pulmonary vascular remodeling, right ventricular pressure, and right heart hypertrophy. In the nucleus, circSMOC1 directly binds to PTBP1 (polypyrimidine tract-binding protein), competitively inhibits the specific splicing of PKM (pyruvate kinase M) premRNA, resulting in the upregulation of PKM2 (pyruvate kinase M2), the key enzyme of aerobic glycolysis, to enhance glycolysis. In the cytoplasm, circSMOC1 acted as a miR-329-3p sponge, and its reduction in pulmonary arterial hypertension suppressed PDHB (pyruvate dehydrogenase E1 subunit beta) expression, leading to the impairment of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation.

CONCLUSIONS

circSMOC1 is crucially involved in the metabolic reprogramming of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells through PTBP1 and miR-329-3p to regulate pulmonary vascular remodeling in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

The role of cuproptosis-related gene in the classification and prognosis of melanoma

Background

Melanoma, as one of the most aggressive and malignant cancers, ranks first in the lethality rate of skin cancers. Cuproptosis has been shown to paly a role in tumorigenesis, However, the role of cuproptosis in melanoma metastasis are not clear. Studying the correlation beteen the molecular subtypes of cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) and metastasis of melanoma may provide some guidance for the prognosis of melanoma.

Methods

We collected 1085 melanoma samples in The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO) databases, constructed CRGs molecular subtypes and gene subtypes according to clinical characteristics, and investigated the role of CRGs in melanoma metastasis. We randomly divide the samples into train set and validation set according to the ratio of 1:1. A prognostic model was constructed using data from the train set and then validated on the validation set. We performed tumor microenvironment analysis and drug sensitivity analyses for high and low risk groups based on the outcome of the prognostic model risk score. Finally, we established a metastatic model of melanoma.

Results

According to the expression levels of 12 cuproptosis-related genes, we obtained three subtypes of A₁, B₁, and C₁. Among them, C₁ subtype had the best survival outcome. Based on the differentially expressed genes shared by A₁, B₁, and C₁ genotypes, we obtained the results of three gene subtypes of A₂, B₂, and C₂. Among them, the B₂ group had the best survival outcome. Then, we constructed a prognostic model consisting of 6 key variable genes, which could more accurately predict the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival rates of melanoma patients. Besides, 98 drugs were screened out. Finally, we explored the role of cuproptosis-related genes in melanoma metastasis and established a metastasis model using seven key genes.

Conclusions

In conclusion, CRGs play a role in the metastasis and prognosis of melanoma, and also provide new insights into the underlying pathogenesis of melanoma.

Cuproptosis and cuproptosis-related genes in rheumatoid arthritis: Implication, prospects, and perspectives

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease that severely affects patients' physical and mental health, leading to chronic synovitis and destruction of bone joints. Although various available clinical treatment options exist, patients respond with varying efficacies due to multiple factors, and there is an urgent need to discover new treatment options to improve clinical outcomes. Cuproptosis is a newly characterized form of cell death. Copper causes cuproptosis by binding to lipid-acylated components of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, leading to protein aggregation, loss of iron-sulfur cluster proteins, and eventually proteotoxic stress. Targeting copper cytotoxicity and cuproptosis are considered potential options for treating oncological diseases. The synovial hypoxic environment and the presence of excessive glycolysis in multiple cells appear to act as inhibitors of cuproptosis, which can lead to excessive survival and proliferation of multiple immune cells, such as fibroblast-like synoviocytes, effector T cells, and macrophages, further mediating inflammation and bone destruction in RA. Therefore, in this study, we attempted to elaborate and summarize the linkage of cuproptosis and key genes regulating cuproptosis to the pathological mechanisms of RA and their effects on a variety of immune cells. This study aimed to provide a theoretical basis and support for translating preclinical and experimental results of RA to clinical protocols.

miR-203a-3p, ABL1 and TP63 gene expression is altered in the endometrium of women with endometriosis

OBJECTIVE

Many genes and miRNAs have been shown to be associated with the pathogenesis of endometriosis. TP63 (p63) is implicated in lineage specification, proliferative potential, differentiation, cell death and survival. The ABL1 proto-oncogene encodes a cytoplasmic and nuclear protein tyrosine kinase implicated in cell differentiation, cell division, and cell adhesion. Moreover, hsa-miR-203a-3p was reported to play pivotal roles in tumor progression by targeting multiple genes, including ABL1 and TP63. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of ABL1, TP63, and miR-203a-3p in endometriosis.

METHODS

This study included 30 women with endometriosis (stage III: n = 12 and stage IV: n = 18) and 30 age-matched controls. Total RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis were performed, and a quantitative polymerase chain reaction technique was used to determine the expression of miR-203a-3p, TP63, and ABL1.

RESULTS

TP63 and ABL1 were significantly overexpressed in stages III and IV endometriosis as compared to controls (p < .0001). Moreover, overexpression of ABL1 and TP63 was observed in stage IV compared to stage III (p = .0006 and p = .0002, respectively). Furthermore, significant increase miR-203a-3p expression has been seen in stage IV endometriosis compared to controls (p = .006). The expression of miR-203a-3p in stage III was not significant compared to stage IV and control (p = .33 and p = .43, respectively).

CONCLUSION

It is concluded that miR-203a-3p, ABL1 and TP63 gene expression is altered in the endometrium of patients with endometriosis. It is also suggested that miR-203a-3p, ABL1, and TP63 might be candidate factors for the pathogenesis of endometriosis and suggesting its therapeutic potential in endometriosis.

ROS and miRNA Dysregulation in Ovarian Cancer Development, Angiogenesis and Therapeutic Resistance

The diverse repertoires of cellular mechanisms that progress certain cancer types are being uncovered by recent research and leading to more effective treatment options. Ovarian cancer (OC) is among the most difficult cancers to treat. OC has limited treatment options, especially for patients diagnosed with late-stage OC. The dysregulation of miRNAs in OC plays a significant role in tumorigenesis through the alteration of a multitude of molecular processes. The development of OC can also be due to the utilization of endogenously derived reactive oxygen species (ROS) by activating signaling pathways such as PI3K/AKT and MAPK. Both miRNAs and ROS are involved in regulating OC angiogenesis through mediating multiple angiogenic factors such as hypoxia-induced factor (HIF-1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The NAPDH oxidase subunit NOX4 plays an important role in inducing endogenous ROS production in OC. This review will discuss several important miRNAs, NOX4, and ROS, which contribute to therapeutic resistance in OC, highlighting the effective therapeutic potential of OC through these mechanisms.

Mitochondrial Dysfunction Pathway Alterations Offer Potential Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets for Ovarian Cancer

The mitochondrion is a very versatile organelle that participates in some important cancer-associated biological processes, including energy metabolism, oxidative stress, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation, cell apoptosis, mitochondria-nuclear communication, dynamics, autophagy, calcium overload, immunity, and drug resistance in ovarian cancer. Multiomics studies have found that mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and apoptosis signaling pathways act in human ovarian cancer, which demonstrates that mitochondria play critical roles in ovarian cancer. Many molecular targeted drugs have been developed against mitochondrial dysfunction pathways in ovarian cancer, including olive leaf extract, nilotinib, salinomycin, Sambucus nigra agglutinin, tigecycline, and eupatilin. This review article focuses on the underlying biological roles of mitochondrial dysfunction in ovarian cancer progression based on omics data, potential molecular relationship between mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress, and future perspectives of promising biomarkers and therapeutic targets based on the mitochondrial dysfunction pathway for ovarian cancer.

The Role of MiRNA in Cancer: Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Cancer is also determined by the alterations of oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes. These gene expressions can be regulated by microRNAs (miRNA). At this point, researchers focus on addressing two main questions: "How are oncogenes and/or tumor suppressor genes regulated by miRNAs?" and "Which other mechanisms in cancer cells are regulated by miRNAs?" In this work we focus on gathering the publications answering these questions. The expression of miRNAs is affected by amplification, deletion or mutation. These processes are controlled by oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, which regulate different mechanisms of cancer initiation and progression including cell proliferation, cell growth, apoptosis, DNA repair, invasion, angiogenesis, metastasis, drug resistance, metabolic regulation, and immune response regulation in cancer cells. In addition, profiling of miRNA is an important step in developing a new therapeutic approach for cancer.

ITPKA induces cell senescence, inhibits ovarian cancer tumorigenesis and can be downregulated by miR-203

Overcoming senescence is a feature of ovarian cancer cells; however, the mechanisms underlying senescence regulation in ovarian cancer cells remain largely unknown. In this study, we found that ITPKA was downregulated in ovarian cancer samples, and the lower expression correlated with poor survival. Overexpression of ITPKA inhibited the anchorage-independent growth of ovarian cancer cells and induced senescence. However, knockdown of ITPKA promoted the anchorage-independent growth of ovarian cancer cells and inhibited senescence. Mechanistically, ITPKA was found to interact with MDM2, which stabilized P53, an essential regulator of senescence. Moreover, ITPKA was negatively regulated by miR-203, a microRNA that has been previously reported to be upregulated in ovarian cancer. Taken together, the results of this study demonstrated the tumor suppressive roles of ITPKA in ovarian cancer and provided a good explanation for the oncogenic roles of miR-203.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of the prognostic significance of microRNAs related to metastatic and EMT process among prostate cancer patients

The ability of tumor cells to spread from their origin place and form secondary tumor foci is determined by the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process. In epithelial tumors such as prostate cancer (PCa), the loss of intercellular interactions can be observed as a change in expression of polarity proteins. Epithelial cells acquire ability to migrate, what leads to the formation of distal metastases. In recent years, the interest in miRNA molecules as potential future treatment options has increased. In tumor microenvironment, miRNAs have the ability to regulate signal transduction pathways, where they can act as suppressors or oncogenes. MiRNAs are secreted by cancer cells, and the changes in their expression levels are closely related to a cancer progression, including epithelial-mesenchymal transition. These molecules offer new diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities. Therapeutics which make use of synthesized RNA fragments and mimic or block miRNAs affected in PCa, may lead to inhibition of tumor progression and even disease re-emission. Based on appropriate qualification criteria, we conducted a selection process to identify scientific articles describing miRNAs and their relation to epithelial-mesenchymal transition in PCa patients. The studies were published in English on Pubmed, Scopus and the Web of Science before August 08, 2019. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) as well as total Gleason score were used to assess the concordance between miRNAs and presence of metastases. A total of 13 studies were included in our meta-analysis, representing 1608 PCa patients and 15 miRNA molecules. Our study clarifies a relationship between the clinicopathological features of PCa and the aberrant expression of several miRNA as well as the complex mechanism of miRNA molecules involvement in the induction and promotion of the metastatic mechanism in PCa.

miR-203 is an independent molecular predictor of prognosis and treatment outcome in ovarian cancer: a multi-institutional study

Ovarian cancer (OC) accounts for the most gynecological cancer-related deaths in developed countries. Unfortunately, the lack of both evident early symptoms and effective asymptomatic population screening results in late diagnosis and inevitably poor prognosis. Hence, it is urgent to identify novel molecular markers to support personalized prognosis. In the present study, we have analyzed the clinical significance of miR-203 in OC using two institutionally independent cohorts. miR-203 levels were quantified in a screening (n = 125) and a validation cohort (n = 100, OVCAD multicenter study). Survival analysis was performed using progression and death as clinical endpoint events. Internal validation was conducted by bootstrap analysis, and decision curve analysis was used to evaluate the clinical benefit. Increased miR-203 levels in OC patients were correlated with unfavorable prognosis and higher risk for disease progression, independently of FIGO stage, tumor grade, residual tumor after surgery, chemotherapy response and age. The analysis of the institutionally independent validation cohort (OVCAD study) clearly confirmed the shorter survival outcome of the patients overexpressing miR-203. Additionally, integration of miR-203 levels with the established disease prognostic markers led to a superior stratification of OC patients that can ameliorate prognosis and benefit patient clinical management. In this regard, miR-203 expression constitutes a novel independent molecular marker to improve patients' prognosis in OC.

Regulation of Glycolysis by Non-coding RNAs in Cancer: Switching on the Warburg Effect

The “Warburg effect” describes the reprogramming of glucose metabolism away from oxidative phosphorylation toward aerobic glycolysis, and it is one of the hallmarks of cancer cells. Several factors can be involved in this process, but in this review, the roles of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are highlighted in several types of human cancer. ncRNAs, including microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs, and circular RNAs, can all affect metabolic enzymes and transcription factors to promote glycolysis and modulate glucose metabolism to enhance the progression of tumors. In particular, the 5′-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathways are associated with alterations in ncRNAs. A better understanding of the roles of ncRNAs in the Warburg effect could ultimately lead to new therapeutic approaches for suppressing cancer.

The Role of microRNAs in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Metastasis

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is the deadliest gynecological cancer, and the major cause of death is mainly attributed to metastasis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a group of small non-coding RNAs that exert important regulatory functions in many biological processes through their effects on regulating gene expression. In most cases, miRNAs interact with the 3′ UTRs of target mRNAs to induce their degradation and suppress their translation. Aberrant expression of miRNAs has been detected in EOC tumors and/or the biological fluids of EOC patients. Such dysregulation occurs as the result of alterations in DNA copy numbers, epigenetic regulation, and miRNA biogenesis. Many studies have demonstrated that miRNAs can promote or suppress events related to EOC metastasis, such as cell migration, invasion, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and interaction with the tumor microenvironment. In this review, we provide a brief overview of miRNA biogenesis and highlight some key events and regulations related to EOC metastasis. We summarize current knowledge on how miRNAs are dysregulated, focusing on those that have been reported to regulate metastasis. Furthermore, we discuss the role of miRNAs in promoting and inhibiting EOC metastasis. Finally, we point out some limitations of current findings and suggest future research directions in the field.

Circulating and Tissue microRNAs as Biomarkers for Ovarian Cancer Prognosis

Ovarian cancer (OC) is one of the most common cancers globally with a high rate of cancer- associated mortality. OC may be classified into epithelial cell neoplasms, germ cell neoplasms and stromal cell neoplasms. The five-year survival in the early and advanced stages of disease is approximately 90% and 15%, respectively. microRNAs are short, single-stranded, non-coding ribonucleic acid (RNA). miRNAs play critical roles in post transcriptionally regulations of gene expression. miRNAs are found in different tissues and body fluids. In carcinogenesis the expression of miRNAs are altered. Recent studies have revealed that there is a relationship between alteration of miRNAs expression and the prognosis of patients with OC. The aim of this review was to summarize the findings of recent studies that have investigated the expression of circulating and tissue miRNAs as novel biomarkers in the prognosis of OC.

Roles of microRNAs in Ovarian Cancer Tumorigenesis: Two Decades Later, What Have We Learned?

Ovarian cancer is one of the top gynecological malignancies that cause deaths among females in the United States. At the molecular level, significant progress has been made in our understanding of ovarian cancer development and progression. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short, single-stranded, highly conserved non-coding RNA molecules (19–25 nucleotides) that negatively regulate target genes post-transcriptionally. Over the last two decades, mounting evidence has demonstrated the aberrant expression of miRNAs in different human malignancies, including ovarian carcinomas. Deregulated miRNAs can have profound impacts on various cancer hallmarks by repressing tumor suppressor genes. This review will discuss up-to-date knowledge of how the aberrant expression of miRNAs and their targeted genes drives ovarian cancer initiation, proliferation, survival, and resistance to chemotherapies. Understanding the mechanisms by which these miRNAs affect these hallmarks should allow the development of novel therapeutic strategies to treat these lethal malignancies.

Reduced miR-203 predicts metastasis and poor survival in esophageal carcinoma

We analyzed data from two non-coding RNA profiling arrays made available by the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and found 17 miRNAs with remarkable differential expression between malignant and normal esophageal tissue. Correlation analysis between expression of these 17 miRNAs and patients’ clinicopathological characteristics showed that miR-203 was down-regulated in esophageal carcinoma (EC) tissues and was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis and poor overall survival. Overexpression of miR-203 significantly attenuated cellular proliferation, migration and invasion by EC cells in culture. Additionally, gene expression profiles and bioinformatics analysis revealed KIF5C to be a direct target of miR-203, and KIF5C overexpression partially counteracted the tumor inhibitory effects of miR-203 on EC cells. We also observed that miR-203, reduced KIFC5 protein levels, promoted cytoplasmic accumulation of Axin2, and reversed the invasive phenotype of EC cells. Taken together, these data demonstrate that miR-203 is a tumor suppressor in EC cells and its expression level could potentially be used as a prognostic indicator for EC patient outcomes.

Inhibition of miR-214-3p Aids in Preventing Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Malignancy by Increasing the Expression of LHX6

In human epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), various miRNAs can function as either oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes. We investigated miRNAs known to be involved in EOC progression and analyzed their expression in tissues and serum-derived exosomes from benign serous cystadenoma, borderline serous tumor, low-grade serous ovarian cancer, and high-grade serous ovarian cancer patients (HGSO). The HGSO group was divided based on the platinum-free interval, which is defined as the duration from the completion of platinum-based chemotherapy to recurrence. We also analyzed the mRNA levels of target genes that candidate miRNAs might regulate in patient tissues. miR-214-3p was highly expressed in tissues and exosomes derived from EOC with high malignancy and also found to regulate the expression of LIM homeobox domain 6 (LHX6) mRNA. Serum exosomal levels of miR-214-3p were significantly increased in platinum-resistant HGSO (25.2-fold, p < 0.001) compared to the exosomal expression of benign tumor patients. On transfection of miR-214-3p inhibitor in EOC cells, cell proliferation was inhibited while apoptotic cell death was increased. Collectively, we suggest that miR-214-3p in serum exosomes can be a potential biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of ovarian tumor, and its inhibition can be a supportive treatment for EOC.

Sevoflurane inhibits the migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells through regulating ERK/MMP-9 pathway by up-regulating miR-203

Surgery resection is the primary treatment for colorectal cancer (CRC) patients with the risk of cancer dissemination and metastasis. Sevoflurane is one inhalational anesthesia which regulates migration and invasion in varying cancers. However, the effect of sevoflurane on CRC cells and its mechanism remain poorly understood. In this study, SW620 and HCT116 cells were treated with different concentrations of sevoflurane for 6 h in vitro. We measured the effect of sevoflurane on cell survival, migration and invasion by 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide or trans-well assays. Moreover, we explored the interaction between sevoflurane and miR-203 and Roundabout1 (Robo1) as well as the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) pathway. Results showed that sevoflurane inhibited cell migration and invasion in SW620 and HCT116 cells in a concentration dependent manner. Moreover, different concentrations of sevoflurane suppressed the phosphorylation of ERK. miR-203 expression was impaired while sevoflurane reversed the expression of miR-203 in CRC cells. In addition, inhibition of miR-203 attenuated the inhibitory effect of sevoflurane on cell migration, invasion and phosphorylated ERK level. Notably, MMP-9, as a downstream of ERK, was involved in sevoflurane-mediated processes in CRC cells. Besides, Robo1 was indicated as a target of miR-203 and inhibited by sevoflurane treatment. These results indicated that sevoflurane suppressed cell migration and invasion through regulating ERK/MMP-9 pathway via miR-203/Robo1 in CRC cells, indicating important clinical implications for anesthetic agents to prevent metastasis in CRC.

MicroRNA-203 reinforces stemness properties in melanoma and augments tumorigenesis in vivo

One of the challenges encountered in microRNA (miRNA) studies is to observe their dual role in different conditions and cells. This leads to a tougher prediction of their behavior as gene expression regulators. miR-203 has been identified to play a negative role in the progression of malignant melanoma; however, it has been reported, with dual effect, as both an oncomiR and tumor suppressor miRNA in some malignancies, such as breast cancer, meanwhile, the role of miR-203 in melanoma stem cells or even metastatic cells is unclear. In the present study, after observation of upregulation of miR-203 in melanoma patient's serum and also melanospheres as cancer stem cells model, we examined its overexpression on the stemness potential and migration ability of melanoma cells. Our data demonstrated that the increased miR-203 level was significantly associated with significant increase in the ability of proliferation, colony and spheres formation, migration, and tumorigenesis in A375 and NA8 cells. All of these changes were associated with enhancement of BRAF, several epithelial to mesenchymal transition factors, and stemness genes. In conclusion, our results clearly determined that miR-203 could be down-regulateddownregulated in melanoma tissues but be overexpressed in melanoma stem cells. It has an important role as oncomiR and promote repopulation, tumorigenicity, self-renewal, and migration. Therefore, we suggested overexpression of miR-203 as biomarker for early detection of metastasis. However, more studies are needed to validate our data.

A 19‑miRNA Support Vector Machine classifier and a 6‑miRNA risk score system designed for ovarian cancer patients

Ovarian cancer (OC) is the most common gynecologic malignancy with high incidence and mortality. The present study aimed to develop approaches for determining the recurrence type and identify potential miRNA markers for OC prognosis. The miRNA expression profile of OC (the training set, including 390 samples with recurrence information) was downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. The validation sets GSE25204 and GSE27290 were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. Prescreening of clinical factors was conducted using the survival package, and the differentially expressed miRNAs (DE-miRNAs) were identified using the limma package. Using the Caret package, the optimal miRNA set was selected to build a Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier. The miRNAs and clinical factors independently related to prognosis were analyzed using the survival package, and the risk score system was constructed. Finally, the miRNA-target regulatory network was built by Cytoscape software, and enrichment analysis was performed. There were 46 DE-miRNAs between the recurrent and non-recurrent samples. After the optimal 19-miRNA set was selected for constructing the SVM classifier, 6 DE-miRNAs (miR-193b, miR-211, miR-218, miR-505, miR-508 and miR-514) independently related to prognosis were further extracted to build the risk score system. The neoplasm cancer status was independently correlated with the prognosis and conducted with stratified analysis. Additionally, the target genes in the regulatory network were enriched in the regulation of actin cytoskeleton and the TGF-β signaling pathway. The 6-miRNA signature may serve as a potential biomarker for OC prognosis, particularlyfor recurrence.

Identification of key pathways and genes in endometrial cancer using bioinformatics analyses

Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the most common gynecological cancer types worldwide. However, to the best of our knowledge, its underlying mechanisms remain unknown. The current study downloaded three mRNA and microRNA (miRNA) datasets of EC and normal tissue samples, GSE17025, GSE63678 and GSE35794, from the Gene Expression Omnibus to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and miRNAs (DEMs) in EC tumor tissues. The DEGs and DEMs were then validated using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas and subjected to gene ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis. STRING and Cytoscape were used to construct a protein-protein interaction network and the prognostic effects of the hub genes were analyzed. Finally, miRecords was used to predict DEM targets and an miRNA-gene network was constructed. A total of 160 DEGs were identified, of which 51 genes were highly expressed and 100 DEGs were discovered from the PPI network. Three overlapping genes between the DEGs and the DEM targets, BIRC5, CENPF and HJURP, were associated with significantly worse overall survival of patients with EC. A number of DEGs were enriched in cell cycle, human T-lymphotropic virus infection and cancer-associated pathways. A total of 20 DEMs and 29 miRNA gene pairs were identified. In conclusion, the identified DEGs, DEMs and pathways in EC may provide new insights into understanding the underlying molecular mechanisms that facilitate EC tumorigenesis and progression.

miR-203 inhibits ovarian tumor metastasis by targeting BIRC5 and attenuating the TGFβ pathway

BACKGROUND

We previously reported that miR-203 functions as a tumor suppressor in ovarian cancer cells by directly targeting transcription factor Snai2 and inhibiting epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), whereas BIRC5/survivin promotes EMT. In this study, we tested our hypothesis that miR-203 inhibits ovarian tumor metastasis by suppressing EMT through targeting BIRC5, using an orthotopic ovarian cancer mouse model.

METHODS

We overexpressed miR-203 in ovarian cancer SKOV3 and OVCAR3 cells using a lentiviral vector and examined cell migration and invasion using transwell plates. The small molecule inhibitor, YM155, was used to inhibit survivin expression. miR-203-expressing and control SKOV3 cells were intrabursally injected into immunocompromised NSG female mice. Primary tumors in ovaries and metastatic tumors were collected to determine the expression of survivin and EMT markers using Western blot and immunostaining.

RESULTS

Overexpression of miR-203 inhibits EMT by targeting BIRC5 in ovarian cancer SKOV3 and OVCAR3 cells. miR-203 expression enhances the ability of the survivin inhibitor YM155 to reduce tumor cell migration and invasion in vitro. We further showed that miR-203 expression attenuated the TGFβ pathway in both SKOV3 and OVCAR3 cells. miR-203 expression also inhibited primary tumor growth in ovaries and metastatic tumors in multiple peritoneal organs including liver and spleen.

CONCLUSION

miR-203 inhibits ovarian tumor metastasis by targeting BIRC5/survivin and attenuating the TGFβ pathway.

MicroRNA‑665 suppresses the growth and migration of ovarian cancer cells by targeting HOXA10

Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecological cancer and its metastasis leads to a poor prognosis. The present study was designed to elucidate how microRNA (miR)-665 regulates the proliferation and migration of ovarian tumor cells. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) demonstrated that miR-665 expression was decreased in ovarian cancer tissues. Increased expression of miR-665 suppressed the growth and migration of ovarian cancer cells, whereas the downregulated expression of miR-665 led to the opposite results. Bioinformatics tools identified homeobox A10 (HOXA10) as a target of miR-665. Following miR-665 overexpression, HOXA10 protein expression was significantly reduced. A dual luciferase assay revealed that miR-665 bound to the 3′-untranslated region of HOXA10. Immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR revealed that the expression of HOXA10 was negatively correlated with the expression of miR-665. It was concluded that miR-665 targets HOXA10 and may act as a tumor-suppressing gene in ovarian cancer. This pathway may be involved in the development and metastasis of ovarian cancer.

Upregulation of miR-614 promotes proliferation and inhibits apoptosis in ovarian cancer by suppressing PPP2R2A expression

It has previously been demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) have essential roles and participate in various biological processes by regulating their specific target genes. However, the precise role of miRNAs in ovarian cancer (OC) has not yet been elucidated. The present study demonstrated that miR‑614 expression levels were significantly upregulated in OC tissues and cell lines, whereas decreased miR‑614 demonstrated opposite effects. Furthermore, gain‑of‑function and loss‑of‑function experiments indicated that miR‑614 overexpression promoted cell proliferation and suppressed cell apoptosis. Protein phosphatase 2 regulatory subunit B α, (PPP2R2A) was identified as a direct target of miR‑614 using western blotting and luciferase reporter assays. Notably, silencing of PPP2R2A counter‑acted the effect of miR‑614 inhibitor in OC cell proliferation and cell apoptosis. Overall, the data suggested that miR‑614 promoted cell proliferation and inhibited cell apoptosis of OC cells by targeting PPP2R2A, and may therefore act as a potential target for OC therapy in the future.

Asymmetric RNA Distribution among Cells and Their Secreted Exosomes: Biomedical Meaning and Considerations on Diagnostic Applications

Over the past few years, exosomes and their RNA cargo have been extensively studied because of the fascinating biological roles they play in cell-to-cell communication, including the signal exchange among cancer, stromal, and immune cells, leading to modifications of tumor microenvironment. RNAs, especially miRNAs, stored within exosomes, seem to be among the main determinants of such signaling: their sorting into exosomes appears to be cell-specific and related to cellular physiopathology. Accordingly, the identification of exosomal miRNAs in body fluids from pathological patients has become one of the most promising activity in the field of biomarker discovery. Several analyses on the qualitative and quantitative distribution of RNAs between cells and their secreted exosomes have given rise to questions on whether and how accurately exosomal RNAs would represent the transcriptomic snapshot of the physiological and pathological status of secreting cells. Although the exact molecular mechanisms of sorting remain quite elusive, many papers have reported an evident asymmetric quantitative distribution of RNAs between source cells and their exosomes. This phenomenon could depend both on passive and active sorting mechanisms related to: (a) RNA turnover; (b) maintaining the cytoplasmic miRNA:target equilibrium; (c) removal of RNAs not critical or even detrimental for normal or diseased cells. These observations represent very critical issues in the exploitation of exosomal miRNAs as cancer biomarkers. In this review, we will discuss how much the exosomal and corresponding donor cell transcriptomes match each other, to better understand the actual reliability of exosomal RNA molecules as pathological biomarkers reflecting a diseased status of the cells.

Proteomics analysis to reveal biological pathways and predictive proteins in the survival of high-grade serous ovarian cancer

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) is an aggressive cancer with a worse clinical outcome. Therefore, studies about the prognosis of HGSC may provide therapeutic avenues to improve patient outcomes. Since genome alteration are manifested at the protein level, we integrated protein and mRNA data of ovarian cancer from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (CPTAC) and utilized the sparse overlapping group lasso (SOGL) method, a new mechanism-driven variable selection method, to select dysregulated pathways and crucial proteins related to the survival of HGSC. We found that biosynthesis of amino acids was the main biological pathway with the best predictive performance (AUC = 0.900). A panel of three proteins, namely EIF2B1, PRPS1L1 and MAPK13 were selected as potential predictive proteins and the risk score consisting of these three proteins has predictive performance for overall survival (OS) and progression free survival (PFS), with AUC of 0.976 and 0.932, respectively. Our study provides additional information for further mechanism and therapeutic avenues to improve patient outcomes in clinical practice.

MicroRNA dysregulation in the tumor microenvironment influences the phenotype of pancreatic cancer

Cellular interactions in the tumor microenvironment influence neoplastic progression in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. One underlying mechanism is the induction of the prognostically unfavorable epithelial-mesenchymal-transition-like tumor budding. Our aim is to explore the expression of microRNAs implicated in the regulation of tumor budding focusing on the microenvironment of the invasive front. To this end, RNA from laser-capture-microdissected material of the main tumor, tumor buds, juxta-tumoral stroma, tumor-remote stroma, and non-neoplastic pancreatic parenchyma from pancreatic cancer cases with (n=7) and without (n=6) tumor budding was analyzed by qRT-PCR for the expression of a panel of miRNAs that are known to be implicated in the regulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition, including miR-21, miR-183, miR-200b, miR-200c, miR-203, miR-205, miR-210, and miR-217. Here we show that at the invasive front of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, specific microRNAs, are differentially expressed between tumor buds and main tumor cells and between cases with and without tumor budding, indicating their involvement in the regulation of the budding phenotype. Notably, miR-200b and miR-200c were significantly downregulated in the tumor buds. Consistent with this finding, they negatively correlated with the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal-transition-associated E-cadherin repressors ZEB1 and ZEB2 in the budding cells (P<0.001). Interestingly, many microRNAs were also dysregulated in juxta-tumoral compared to tumor-remote stroma suggesting that juxta-tumoral stroma contributes to microRNA dysregulation. Notably, miR-200b and miR-200c were strongly downregulated while miR-210 and miR-21 were upregulated in the juxta-tumoral vs tumor-remote stroma in carcinomas with tumor budding. In conclusion, microRNA targeting in both tumor and stromal cells could represent a treatment option for aggressive pancreatic cancer.

Dicumarol inhibits PDK1 and targets multiple malignant behaviors of ovarian cancer cells

Pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDK1) is overexpressed in ovarian cancer and thus is a promising anticancer therapeutic target. Our previous work suggests that coumarin compounds are potential inhibitors of PDKs. In this study, we used the ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 as the model system and examined whether dicumarol (DIC), a coumarin compound, could inhibit ovarian cancer through targeting PDK1. We showed that DIC potently inhibited the kinase activity of PDK1, shifted the glucose metabolism from aerobic glycolysis to oxidative phosphorylation, generated a higher level of reactive oxygen species (ROS), attenuated the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), induced apoptosis, and reduced cell viability in vitro. The same phenotypes induced by DIC also were translated in vivo, leading to significant suppression of xenograft growth. This study not only identifies a novel inhibitor for PDK1, but it also reveals novel anticancer mechanisms of DIC and provides a promising anticancer therapy that targets the Warburg effect.