Circulating microRNA in body fluid: a new potential biomarker for cancer diagnosis and prognosis

In the past several years, the importance of microRNA (miRNA) in cancer cells has been recognized. Proper control of miRNA expression is essential for maintaining a steady state of the cellular machinery. Recently, it was discovered that extracellular miRNAs circulate in the blood of both healthy an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cancer science 2010-10, Vol.101 (10), p.2087-2092
Main Authors: Kosaka, Nobuyoshi, Iguchi, Haruhisa, Ochiya, Takahiro
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Biomarkers, Tumor - blood
Humans
Medical sciences
MicroRNAs - blood
MicroRNAs - secretion
Neoplasms - diagnosis
Neoplasms - mortality
Prognosis
Review
Tumors
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Summary:In the past several years, the importance of microRNA (miRNA) in cancer cells has been recognized. Proper control of miRNA expression is essential for maintaining a steady state of the cellular machinery. Recently, it was discovered that extracellular miRNAs circulate in the blood of both healthy and diseased patients, although ribonuclease is present in both plasma and serum. Most of the circulating miRNAs are included in lipid or lipoprotein complexes, such as apoptotic bodies, microvesicles, or exosomes, and are, therefore, highly stable. The existence of circulating miRNAs in the blood of cancer patients has raised the possibility that miRNAs may serve as a novel diagnostic marker. However, the secretory mechanism and biological function, as well as the meaning of the existence of extracellular miRNAs, remain largely unclear. In this review, we summarize the usefulness of circulating miRNA for cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutics. Furthermore, we propose a mechanism for the secretion and incorporation of miRNA into the cells. (Cancer Sci 2010)
ISSN:1347-9032
1349-7006
1349-7006
DOI:10.1111/j.1349-7006.2010.01650.x