A three-microRNA panel in serum as novel biomarker for papillary thyroid carcinoma diagnosis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#Accumulating evidence has revealed that circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) can serve as non-invasive biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. This study aimed to identify differentially expressed miRNAs in serum which might become potential biomarkers for non-invasive diagnosis of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).@*METHODS@#The experiment was carried out between 2015 and 2017. In the screening stage, the Exiqon miRNA quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) panel was applied to select candidate miRNAs. In the following training, testing, and external validation stages, the serum samples of 100 patients and 96 healthy controls (HCs) were analyzed to compare the expression levels of the identified miRNAs. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) were calculated to assess the diagnostic value of the identified signature.@*RESULTS@#Three miRNAs (miR-25-3p, miR-296-5p, and miR-92a-3p) in serum were consistently up-regulated in PTC patients compared with HCs. A three-miRNA panel was constructed by logistic regression analysis and showed better diagnostic performance than a single miRNA for PTC detection. The AUCs of the panel were 0.727, 0.771, and 0.862 for the training, testing, and external validation stage, respectively. Meanwhile, the panel showed stable capability in differentiating PTC patients from patients with benign goiters, with an AUC as high as 0.969. For further exploration, the three identified miRNAs were analyzed in tissue samples (23 PTC vs. 23 HCs) and serum-derived exosomes samples (24 PTC vs. 24 HCs), and the altered expression in the tumor also indicated their close relationship with PTC disease.@*CONCLUSION@#We identify a three-miRNA panel in serum which might serve as a promising biomarker for PTC diagnosis.

Serum microRNA expression profiling revealing potential diagnostic biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#Recent studies have demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) in the blood circulation can serve as promising diagnostic markers for cancers. This four-stage study aimed at finding serum miRNAs as potential biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma (LA) diagnosis.@*METHODS@#The study was carried out between 2016 and 2017. The Exiqon miRNA qPCR panel (3 LA vs. 1 normal control [NC] pooled serum samples) was used for initial screening to acquire miRNA profiles. Thirty-five dysregulated miRNAs were further evaluated in the training (24 LA vs. 24 NCs) and testing stages (110 LA vs. 110 NCs) using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assays.@*RESULTS@#Four serum miRNAs (miR-133a-3p, miR-584-5p, miR-10b-5p, and miR-221-3p) were significantly overexpressed in LA patients compared with NCs. The diagnostic value of the four-miRNA panel was validated by an external cohort (36 LA vs. 36 NCs). The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the four-miRNA panel in the training, testing, and external validation stages were 0.734, 0.803, and 0.894 respectively. Meanwhile, the expression level of miR-221-3p was much higher in LA tumor samples than that in the adjacent normal tissues (19 LA vs. 19 NCs). The expression level of miR-10b-5p was also elevated in the serum-derived exosomes samples (18 LA vs. 18 NCs). The expression of miR-133a-3p, miR-584-5p, and miR-10b-5p was significantly elevated in LA patients with epidermal growth factor receptor mutation compared with NCs.@*CONCLUSION@#The study established a four-miRNA signature in serum that could improve the diagnostic capability of LA.