The Latest Overview of circRNA in the Progression, Diagnosis, Prognosis, Treatment, and Drug Resistance of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the main causes of tumor-related deaths worldwide. Due to the lack of obvious early symptoms and the lack of sensitive screening indicators in the early stage of HCC, the vast majority of patients are diagnosed with advanced or metastatic HCC, resulting in dissatisfactory treatment result. Therefore, it is urgent to determine effective and sensitive diagnostic and prognostic indicators and to determine new therapeutic targets. Circular RNA (circRNA) is a type of non-coding RNA that has been neglected for a long time. In recent years, it has been proved to play an important role in the development of many human diseases. Increasing evidence shows that change in circRNA expression has an extensive effect on the biological behavior of HCC. In this study, we comprehensively tracked the latest progress of circRNA in the pathogenesis of HCC, and reviewed its role as a biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis prediction in patients with HCC. In addition, we also summarized the potential of circRNA as therapeutic target in HCC and its relationship with HCC drug resistance, providing clues for the clinical development of circRNA-based therapeutic strategies.

RNA-sep analysis of circular RNAs and ceRNA networks in human hepatocellular carcinoma

“…Increasing evidence indicates that circRNAs are dysregulated in HCC and can control and regulate gene expression at the transcriptional or posttranscriptional levels, mediating immune escape, drug resistance, proliferation, invasion, metastasis and various malignant biological behaviours of HCC cells [14] . Moreover, circRNAs have high potential as biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognostic assessment [15,16] . These characteristics are veri ed by the detectability of circRNA in human plasma, saliva, urine and other body uids [17] .…”

Long Noncoding RNA AC007639.1 Promotes the Pathogenesis and Progression of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Through Inhibiting Apoptosis and Stimulating Chemotherapeutic Resistance

“…LncRNAs and endonuclease (15) are involved in the pathogenesis of liver cancer. Most lncRNAs promote the proliferation of HCC through microRNAs (16). The application of bioinformatic analyses facilitated the identification of candidate lncRNAs and related signaling pathways for indispensable mechanistic studies.…”

“…LncRNAs and endonuclease ( 15 ) are involved in the pathogenesis of liver cancer. Most lncRNAs promote the proliferation of HCC through microRNAs ( 16 ).…”

LMX1B Activated Circular RNA GFRA1 Modulates the Tumorigenic Properties and Immune Escape of Prostate Cancer

“…They can act as decoys for downstream microRNAs (miRNAs) to regulate gene expression and interact with proteins and as scaffolds for circRNA-protein complexes [7]. The functions of circRNAs have been explored in many diseases, such as hepatocellular carcinoma, gastric cancer, renal cell carcinoma, lung cancer, and bladder cancer ( [8][9][10][11][12][13]). Furthermore, accumulating evidence suggests the essential role of circRNA in PCa progression.…”