Comprehensive Analysis of Differentially Expressed MiRNAs in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Prognostic, Predictive Significance and Pathway Insights

Overview

Journal PLoS One

Specialties General Medicine
Science

Date 2024 Apr 18

PMID 38635644

Authors

Kayleigh Smith

Dan Beach

Roger Silva

Gyorffy Balazs

Francesca Salani

Francesco Crea

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Robust prognostic and predictive factors for hepatocellular carcinoma, a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, have not yet been identified. Previous studies have identified potential HCC determinants such as genetic mutations, epigenetic alterations, and pathway dysregulation. However, the clinical significance of these molecular alterations remains elusive. MicroRNAs are major regulators of protein expression. MiRNA functions are frequently altered in cancer. In this study, we aimed to explore the prognostic value of differentially expressed miRNAs in HCC, to elucidate their associated pathways and their impact on treatment response. To this aim, bioinformatics techniques and clinical dataset analyses were employed to identify differentially expressed miRNAs in HCC compared to normal hepatic tissue. We validated known associations and identified a novel miRNA signature with potential prognostic significance. Our comprehensive analysis identified new miRNA-targeted pathways and showed that some of these protein coding genes predict HCC patients' response to the tyrosine kinase inhibitor sorafenib.

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