Cancer Biomarkers - Volume 21, issue 2

Authors: Cong, Chunlei | Wang, Wenbo | Tian, Jun | Gao, Tianqi | Zheng, Weizhuo | Zhou, Changlin

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: BACKGROUND: It has been demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in the carcinogenesis of osteosarcoma. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to determine the diagnostic and prognostic value of serum miR-124 in osteosarcoma. METHODS: The serum miR-124 expression levels in 114 osteosarcoma patients, 40 periostitis patients and 50 normal controls were detected using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). RESULTS: The level of serum miR-124 was remarkably decreased in osteosarcoma patients when compared to periostitis patients and healthy controls (both p < …0.05). The serum miR-124 levels in osteosarcoma patients were significantly elevated after receiving surgical treatment (p < 0.01). Furthermore, the area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for serum miR-124 was 0.846, combining with 79.8% sensitivity and 86.00% specificity. A significant correlation was detected between serum miR-124 expression and distant metastasis (p = 0.0256) as well as clinical stage (p = 0.0006). Similarly, serum miR-124 levels in patients with advanced clinical stage or positive distant metastasis were significantly decreased. Moreover, the Kaplan-Meier method with log-rank test showed that osteosarcoma patients with lower serum miR-124 levels had unfavorable 5 year overall survival and disease free survival rates. Finally, multivariate analysis revealed that serum miR-124 was an independent prognostic indicator for osteosarcoma. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggested that serum miR-124 might be a promising biomarker with diagnostic and prognostic value for osteosarcoma. Show more

Keywords: Serum miR-124, osteosarcoma, prognosis, diagnosis

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170672

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 449-454, 2018

Authors: Fan, Limei | Liu, Zongyu | Zhang, Yong | Zhu, He | Yu, Huimei | Yang, Fan | Yang, Ruiqi | Wu, Fei

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: Cervical squamous cell carcinoma seriously threats to patient’s life and health. MiRNAs have role of regulating cell growth, proliferation, and death. MiRNAs can promote or inhibit cell growth and proliferation. This study discussed the role of miRNA373 in regulating cervical squamous cell carcinoma growth, proliferation, and apoptosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: MiRNA373 and scramble miRNA were synthetized and transfected to cervical squamous cell carcinoma SiHa cells by lipofectamine. IAPs plasmid and miRNA373 were sequentially transfected to SiHa cells. MTT assay, caspase-3 activity, and flow cytometry were applied to test miRNA373 and IAPs impacts on cell growth, …proliferation, and apoptosis. Western blot was adopted to determine IAPs expression. RESULTS: MiRNA373 transfection obviously reduced SiHa cell growth, induced phosphatidylserine eversion and caspase-3 activation, and declined IAPs expression. IAPs interference significantly enhanced miRNA373 induced SiHa cell apoptosis. IAPs overexpression markedly restrained miRNA373 induced SiHa cell apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: MiRNA373 transfection suppressed SiHa cell growth and proliferation. MiRNA373 induced SiHa cell apoptosis possibly through downregulating IAPs, suggesting that IAPs might be a target for cervical squamous cell carcinoma treatment. Show more

Keywords: miRNA373, IAPs, SiHa cell, apoptosis

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170692

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 455-460, 2018

Authors: Luo, Xianyuan | Hou, Nan | Chen, Xiaohua | Xu, Zhiping | Xu, Juqing | Wang, Lin | Yang, Shu | Liu, Suyao | Xu, Li | Chen, Yan | Xiong, Lin | Wang, Jun | Fan, Weifei | Xu, Jiaren

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: N-myc downstream-regulated gene 3 (NDRG3) is one of the important members of the NDRG family which crucially take part in cell proliferation, differentiation and other biological processes. METHODS: In this present study, western-blotting analysis was performed to evaluate NDRG3 expression in NSCLC cell lines. One-step quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) with 16 fresh-frozen NSCLC samples and immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis in 100 NSCLC cases were conducted to explore the relationship between NDRG3 expression and the clinicopathological characteristics of NSCLC. RESULTS: NDRG3 expression levels were statistically higher in NSCLC cell lines …and tissue samples, compared with that of in non-cancerous cell line and tissue samples (p < 0.05). The IHC data demonstrated that the NDRG3 expression was significantly correlated with pathological grade (p = 0.038), N (p = 0.020) and TNM stage (p = 0.002). Survival analysis and Kaplan-Meier curve indicated that NDRG3 expression (p = 0.002) and T (p = 0.047) were independently associated with the unfavorable overall survival of patients with NSCLC. CONCLUSIONS: The data implied that NDRG3 expression may be identified as a new predictor in NSCLC prognosis. Show more

Keywords: NDRG3, NSCLC, prognosis

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170711

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 461-469, 2018

Authors: Xu, Xin-Ran | Wang, Xin | Zhang, Hong | Liu, Ming-Yan | Chen, Qi

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the clinical significance of serum Smac, HE4 and CA125 alone or combined for detecting endometriosis-associated ovarian cancer (EAOC). METHODS: The level of serum Smac, HE4 and CA125 in 40 healthy controls, 40 cases of benign endometriosis ovarian tumor, and 60 cases of EAOC were detected by ELISA and electrochemical immune method. RESULTS: Serum Smac expression level was significantly lower in the EAOC group than in the control group and benign ovarian tumor group (P < 0.05), while HE4 and CA125 expression levels were significantly higher …in the EAOC group than the other two groups. The sensitivity of Smac single detection was up to 91.67%, and the specificity of HE4 was up to 98.75%. Furthermore, the sensitivity of Smac + HE4 + CA125 combined was the highest, which reached up to 98.33%; but the specificity was low, which reached up to 75%. The serum expression level differences before and after surgery were statistically significant. As the number of chemotherapies increases, the Smac level increased, and HE4 and CA125 levels gradually decreased. Furthermore, Smac increased to normal at the end of the 2 nd period of chemotherapy, while HE4 and CA125 decreased to normal in 2 nd and 3 rd period of chemotherapy, respectively. CONCLUSION: Serum Smac, HE4 and CA125 may play an important role in predicting EAOC and in monitoring the prognosis of postoperative EAOC. Show more

Keywords: Smac, HE4, CA125, endometriosis-associated ovarian cancer, chemotherapy

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170720

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 471-477, 2018

Authors: Świtlik, Weronika | Karbownik, Michał Seweryn | Suwalski, Michał | Kozak, Józef | Szemraj, Janusz

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Although an immense effort has been made to develop novel diagnostic methods and treatment strategies for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the survival rate of this disease has remained virtually unchanged. Small non-coding RNAs called microRNAs (miRNAs) have appeared to be very promising biomarkers of cancer including NSCLC. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the expression level of six miRNAs, and subsequently we evaluated their diagnostic ability and their clinical significance. METHODS: We performed an analysis in 50 paired cancer and non-cancerous lung tissue samples collected from NSCLC patients. The RT-qPCR technique was used to …investigate the expression profile. RESULTS: Obtained results indicate that miR-30a-5p, miR-126-3p and miR-486-5p are downregulated, while miR-205-5p and miR-210-3p are upregulated in NSCLC tissue. Moreover, performed stepwise discriminant analysis determined the model including miR-30a-5p and miR-210-3p which tested on the test set (n = 30) revealed an AUC of 0.969 and provided 100% sensitivity and 80% specificity in discriminating NSCLC tissue from non-cancerous lung tissue. CONCLUSIONS: The present preliminary study demonstrated that five tested miRNAs were deregulated in cancer tissue. Moreover, miR-30a-5p together with miR-210-3p with excellent sensitivity and acceptable specificity may distinguish cancer tissue form non-cancerous tissue and thus may become a potential diagnostic biomarker for NSCLC. Show more

Keywords: Non-small cell lung cancer, microRNA, miR-30a-5p, miR-210-3p, biomarker, diagnosis

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170767

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 479-488, 2018

Authors: Lin, Pingping | Pang, Qingsong | Wang, Ping | Lv, Xiying | Liu, Lanfang | Li, Aike

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This article has been retracted, and the online PDF replaced with this retraction notice.

Keywords: MicroRNA-361, Gli1, Snail, EMT, esophageal cancer, invasion

DOI: 10.3233/CBM-170802

Citation: Cancer Biomarkers, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 489-498, 2018