Cancers 2010, 2(2), 1328-1353; doi:10.3390/cancers2021328
Review

Alterations of MicroRNAs in Solid Cancers and Their Prognostic Value

Panagiota Chira 1,2 email, Katerina Vareli 1,3 email, Ioannis Sainis 1 email, Christos Papandreou 4 email and Evangelos Briasoulis 1,5,* email
1 Human Cancer Biobank Center, University of Ioannina, University Campus, Ioannina 45110, Greece 2 Biomedical Research Institute, Foundation for Research & Technology, University Campus, Ioannina 45110, Greece 3 Department of Biological Applications and Technologies, University of Ioannina, University Campus, Ioannina 45110, Greece 4 School of Medicine, University of Thessaly, 22 Papakiriazi, Larissa 41222, Greece 5 School of Medicine, University of Ioannina, University Campus, Ioannina 45110, Greece
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 23 April 2010; in revised form: 2 June 2010 / Accepted: 10 June 2010 / Published: 14 June 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers: Oncology Studies)
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Abstract: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are evolutionarily conserved, naturally abundant, small, regulatory non-coding RNAs that inhibit gene expression at the post-transcriptional level in a sequence-specific manner. Each miRNA represses the protein expression of several coding genes in a manner proportional to the sequence complementarity with the target transcripts. MicroRNAs play key regulatory roles in organismal development and homeostasis. They control fundamental biological processes, such as stem-cell regulation and cellular metabolism, proliferation, differentiation, stress resistance, and apoptosis. Differential miRNA expression is found in malignant tumors in comparison to normal tissue counterparts. This indicates that miRNA deregulation contributes to the initiation and progression of cancer. Currently, miRNA expression signatures are being rigorously investigated in various tumor types, with the aim of developing novel, efficient biomarkers that can improve clinical management of cancer patients. This review discusses deregulated miRNAs in solid tumors, and focuses on their emerging prognostic potential.
Keywords: microRNA; prognostic biomarkers; cancer; solid tumors; gene-silencing; negative-regulation

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MDPI and ACS Style

Chira, P.; Vareli, K.; Sainis, I.; Papandreou, C.; Briasoulis, E. Alterations of MicroRNAs in Solid Cancers and Their Prognostic Value. Cancers 2010, 2, 1328-1353.

AMA Style

Chira P, Vareli K, Sainis I, Papandreou C, Briasoulis E. Alterations of MicroRNAs in Solid Cancers and Their Prognostic Value. Cancers. 2010; 2(2):1328-1353.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Chira, Panagiota; Vareli, Katerina; Sainis, Ioannis; Papandreou, Christos; Briasoulis, Evangelos. 2010. "Alterations of MicroRNAs in Solid Cancers and Their Prognostic Value." Cancers 2, no. 2: 1328-1353.

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