Downregulation of microRNA‑374a predicts poor prognosis in human glioma

Abstract

Certain microRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) may be used as prognostic biomarkers in various types of cancer. The purpose of the present study was to identify miRNAs that were abnormally expressed in glioma of different grades, and to evaluate their clinical implications in patients with glioma. The differentially expressed miRNAs were evaluated from the expression profiles of six glioma tissues (three low-grade and three high-grade gliomas) determined using a microarray platform. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis was used to further verify the aberrant expression of the candidate miRNA in a set of 42 patients and 5 healthy controls. The miRNA target genes were predicted and the protein-protein interaction network was generated; furthermore, functional enrichment analysis of the target genes in Gene Ontology (GO) terms and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways was performed. Kaplan-Meier curves and Log-rank analysis, as well as multivariate Cox regression analysis were performed to assess the association of the candidate miRNA with patient survival. A total of 15 differentially expressed miRNAs, including 13 downregulated and 2 upregulated miRNAs, were identified by comparison of low-grade and high-grade glioma tissues. The miR-374a expression of high-grade gliomas was significantly lower than that of low-grade gliomas (fold change, -4.43; P=0.027). The expression levels of miR-374a gradually decreased with the increase of the pathological grade of glioma. Pearson's Chi-square test was used to determine the association of miR-374a expression with several clinicopathological factors. Furthermore, low expression of miR-374a was determined to be an independent prognostic marker and that it was significantly associated with overall survival (P=0.0213). GO and KEGG pathway analysis revealed that the target genes of miR-374a may be involved in the regulation of the RNA polymerase II promoter and mTOR signaling pathway. The four hub genes (CCND1, SP1, CDK4, CDK6) were also identified by PPI network analysis. In conclusion, the present study indicated that miR-374a may be used as a promising prognostic biomarker for the screening of high-risk populations and for the assessment of the prognosis of patients with glioma.

Autophagy-Associated Markers LC3-II, ULK2 and microRNAs miR-21, miR-126 and miR-374 as a Potential Prognostic Indicator for Glioma Patients

“…This study found up-regulation of miR-374 along with its target gene AKT in low grade glioma. The findings of the current study were also corroborated by Dong et al demonstrated who showed that miR-374 level was significantly repressed in high-grade vs. low-grade gliomas which is consistent with the results of the present study [30]. Similarly, Zhang, et al [31] , reported that miR-374 activates the PI3K/Akt pathway in myocardial damage thus autophagy reveals a novel function for miRNA in a critical cellular event with significant impacts on cancer development, progression, and treatment, and in other diseases [32].…”

Autophagy-Associated Markers LC3-II, ULK2 and microRNAs miR-21, miR-126 and miR-374 as a Potential Prognostic Indicator for Glioma Patients

“…Furthermore, it has been implicated in resistance to treatment, both against chemotherapy and radiotherapy This study found up-regulation of miR-374 along with its target gene AKT in low grade glioma. The ndings of the current study were also corroborated by Dong et al demonstrated who showed that miR-374 level was signi cantly repressed in high-grade vs. low-grade gliomas which is consistent with the results of the present study [29]. Similarly, Zhang, et al [30] , reported that miR-374 activates the PI3K/Akt pathway in myocardial damage thus autophagy reveals a novel function for miRNA in a critical cellular event with signi cant impacts on cancer development, progression, and treatment, and in other diseases [31].…”

Integrated Analysis of miRNA and mRNA Expression Profiles Reveals the Molecular Mechanism of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Therapeutic Drugs

“… 44 The expression of hsa-miR-374b-5p, which was newly identified in this study, was found to be a poor prognostic factor in human glioma. 45 These results suggested the reliability of our study.…”