MicroRNA - Volume 14, Issue 2, 2025

Breast cancer (BC) is the most prevalent cancer among women globally. Metastasis is the leading cause of mortality in most cancers. Early BC detection before metastasis can enhance survival rates. Understanding BC metastasis mechanisms could aid in developing metastasis-specific treatments.

The role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) in cancer progression is recognized, yet the importance of specific lncRNAs in BC, despite potential alterations, remains inadequately explored. We utilized bioinformatics tools to identify novel lncRNAs dysregulated in metastasis. To achieve this objective, the gene expression profile of GSE102484, encompassing metastatic and non-metastatic BC tissue samples, was analyzed using the limma package in R with cut-off criteria set at an adjusted p-value < 0.005 and |fold change (FC)| ≥ 0.5. We used WGCNA analysis to find co-expression genes for lncRNAs. Then, we identified hub genes and performed pathway enrichment to better understand the results. Considering the defined criteria, eight novels of dysregulated lncRNAs and top 10 miRNAs were identified.

Dysregulated lncRNAs are found in yellow, green, brown, purple, and turquoise co-expression modules from WGCNA analysis. Enrichment analysis of these co-expressed modules revealed relevant pathways to metastasis, such as epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and integrin cell-surface interactions, as well as regulation of HIF1-alpha. In addition, SDPR, TGFB1I1, ILF3, KIF4A, and COL5A1 were identified as hub genes. Based on DElncRNA-miRNA-DEmRNA connections and co-expression, we ultimately constructed lncRNA-associated ceRNA axes.

The current study may identify novel lncRNAs implicated in BC metastasis; still, additional research is required to determine the potential functions of these lncRNAs in BC metastasis.

Periodontitis destroys the tooth's supporting structures and attachment apparatus. Local or systemic factors can cause it. Traditionally, diagnosis is based on clinical parameters that may not consistently reflect an accurate confirmation. Biochemical and genetic analyses can provide deeper insights. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate the immune and inflammatory response to microbial pathogens. Detecting and evaluating miRNAs can be an important diagnostic parameter. This study aimed to assess the expression of miRNA 146a,200c, and its target gene PTEN to non-surgical periodontal therapy in serum and saliva.

This interventional comparative study was conducted on 120 patients of both genders, ages between 35 and 55. Non-surgical periodontal therapy (NSPT) scaling and root planing were performed on all subjects, and their saliva and serum samples were collected before and after 8 weeks of NSPT. Quantitative rt-PCR (reverse transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction) analysis was conducted on all samples. The statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 22, and comparisons were made using paired t-tests, independent t-tests, and Pearson’s correlation coefficient. The statistical significance level was set at a ‘P’ value of less than 0.05.

It has been observed that there was a significant difference of miRNA in both serum and saliva samples 146a,200c, and the PTEN gene expression, from the beginning to 8 weeks. Significant variation was not observed when comparing the levels between serum and saliva.

miRNA 146A, 200c, and PTEN genes are interrelated with periodontitis. We can consider them as future biomarkers of periodontal diseases.

miRNAs are small non-coding conserved RNA molecules (18-24 nts) that act as crucial gene regulators via post-transcriptional/translational modifications through interacting with the respective mRNAs during various pathophysiological conditions. Recent research has suggested that non-coding RNAs, particularly miRNAs, can be passed from one species to another to regulate gene expression. Since miRNA-mediated gene regulation has not yet been found in Plasmodia, it is hypothesized that erythrocytic miRNAs from Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) could potentially migrate from the cytoplasm to the parasitophorous vacuole developed intracellularly by the parasite to regulate its transcriptome.

The objective of this study is to investigate the role of trans-kingdom interactions in host-parasite dynamics and their implications for malaria infection.

Using the trans-kingdom target gene prediction tool, psRNA target server, a total of 15 human erythrocytic miRNAs from 12 distinct families were selected and obtained from miRBase to find potential P. falciparum candidate genes. This study utilized ShinyGO (version 0.80) for gene enrichment analysis with statistical analysis of the selected features. The PPI-network analysis was performed using the Maximal Clique Centrality (MCC) approach, along with the CytoHubba plugin for identifying hub nodes. The PPI network was visualized using Cytoscape version 3.7.

A total of 145 target genes of Pf3D7 were predicted, with the following genes repeatedly targeted: conserved Plasmodium proteins, conserved Plasmodium membrane proteins, PfEMP1, rifin, RAD54, E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase, and transcription factors related genes. Outputs of ShinyGO included enriched GO pathways of 62 uniquely identified Pf3D7 genes with detailed descriptions and visualized networks. For overlapping relationships, a hierarchical clustering tree of enriched gene sets was carried out, along with a genome plot for representing the chromosomal locations of these genes. According to their coding-noncoding distribution chart, most of these genes were found to be members of the coding gene family. Additionally, PPI-network analysis reported the top 10 hub nodes: PFE0400w, MAL13P1.380, MAL7P1.167, PFD0900w, PF11_0243, PFE0440w, PFE1120w, MAL13P1.315, PF08_0126, and MAL8P1.23. Three KEGG pathway diagrams of pfa 05144 for Malaria, pfa 03440 for homologous recombination, and pfa 00750 for vitamin B6 metabolism with identified Pf3D7 genes were drawn and highlighted in red.

The important target genes of Plasmodium falciparum 3D7 were identified by carrying out a trans-kingdom investigation, thus offering preliminary insights into the potential of erythrocytic miRNAs-mediated trans-kingdom regulation.

Endometriosis, a prevalent gynecological disorder characterized by the presence of endometrial-like tissue outside the uterus, poses significant challenges in diagnosis and management due to its unclear pathogenesis and lack of specific biomarkers.

This study investigates the potential use of microRNAs (miRNAs) as key markers in endometriosis by studying two cohorts of patients (14 patients diagnosed with endometriosis and 15 patients with gynecological benign lesions, different from endometriosis).

MicroRNA sequencing analysis was tested within data management by a custom pipeline designed by Eurofins Genoma Group.

We identified a specific miRNA expression profile associated with endometriosis to feature specific disease molecular clusters to further elucidate the underlying mechanisms driving endometriosis pathogenesis.

Data from the present study suggest a specific miRNA scar for endometriosis compared to other gynecological diseases to develop screening tools in early diagnosis and to ameliorate the management of the disease itself.

This study lays the foundation for the identification of key miRNAs involved in the disease pathogenesis to unveil the molecular signatures in the complex scenario of endometriosis. Further validation and exploration of these findings are needed to develop tools to improve molecular diagnosis and to create a machine-learning prediction algorithm in the future.