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MicroRNA functional network in pancreatic cancer: From biology to biomarkers of disease

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Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRs), the 17- to 25-nucleotide-long non-coding RNAs, regulate expression of approximately 30% of the protein-coding genes at the post-transcriptional level and have emerged as critical components of the complex functional pathway networks controlling important cellular processes, such as proliferation, development, differentiation, stress response' and apoptosis. Abnormal expression levels of miRs, regulating critical cancer-associated pathways, have been implicated to play important roles in the oncogenic processes, functioning both as oncogenes and as tumour suppressor genes. Elucidation of the genetic networks regulated by the abnormally expressing miRs in cancer cells is proving to be extremely significant in understanding the role of these miRs in the induction of malignant-transformation-associated phenotypic changes. As a result, the miRs involved in the oncogenic transformation process are being investigated as novel biomarkers of disease detection and prognosis as well as potential therapeutic targets for human cancers. In this \article, we review the existing literature in the field documenting the significance of aberrantly expressed miRs in human pancreatic cancer and discuss how the oncogenic miRs may be involved in the genetic networks regulating functional pathways deregulated in this malignancy.

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Abbreviations

3′UTR:

3′ untranslated region

CLL:

chronic lymphocytic leukemia

CP:

chronic pancreatitis

IGF-IR:

insulin-like growth factor type I receptor

INSR:

insulin receptor

IPA:

Ingenuity Pathway Analysis

IPMN:

intraductal papillary neoplasms

miR:

microRNAs

mRNAs:

messenger RNAs

mTOR:

mammalian target of rapamycin

PDAC:

pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

PDCD4:

programmed cell death 4

pre-miR:

precursor miRNA

pri-miRNA:

primary RNA

PTEN:

phosphatase and tensin homologue 2

RISC:

RNA-induced silencing complex

TIMP3:

tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 3

TP53INP1:

tumour protein p53-induced nuclear protein 1

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the help of Ms Barbara Sadeghi in the preparation of this manuscript. The biomarker discovery work in SS’s laboratory is supported by a grant from the Early Detection Research Network of the National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health, USA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA

    Jin Wang & Subrata Sen

  2. Program in Human and Molecular Genetics, The Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, Texas, USA

    Subrata Sen

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  1. Jin Wang
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  2. Subrata Sen
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Correspondence to Subrata Sen.

Additional information

[Wang J and Sen S 2011 MicroRNA functional network in pancreatic cancer: From biology to biomarkers of disease. J. Biosci. 36 481–491] DOI 10.1007/s12038-011-9083-4

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Wang, J., Sen, S. MicroRNA functional network in pancreatic cancer: From biology to biomarkers of disease. J Biosci 36, 481–491 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12038-011-9083-4

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