Int J Biol Sci 2020; 16(14):2628-2647. doi:10.7150/ijbs.47203 This issue Cite
Review
1. Department of Thoracic Surgery, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China.
2. Hunan Key Laboratory of Early Diagnosis and Precision Therapy, Department of Thoracic Surgery, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China.
3. Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion, Ministry of Education, Department of Pathology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Hunan, 410078 China.
4. NHC Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis (Central South University), Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410078 China.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs), small non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) of about 22 nucleotides in size, play important roles in gene regulation, and their dysregulation is implicated in human diseases including cancer. A variety of miRNAs could take roles in the cancer progression, participate in the process of tumor immune, and function with miRNA sponges. During the last two decades, the connection between miRNAs and various cancers has been widely researched. Based on evidence about miRNA, numerous potential cancer biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis have been put forward, providing a new perspective on cancer screening. Besides, there are several miRNA-based therapies among different cancers being conducted, advanced treatments such as the combination of synergistic strategies and the use of complementary miRNAs provide significant clinical benefits to cancer patients potentially. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that many miRNAs are engaged in the resistance of cancer therapies with their complex underlying regulatory mechanisms, whose comprehensive cognition can help clinicians and improve patient prognosis. With the belief that studies about miRNAs in human cancer would have great clinical implications, we attempt to summarize the current situation and potential development prospects in this review.
Keywords: MicroRNAs, Cancer, miRNA-based biomarkers, miRNA-based therapies, Cancer therapy resistance