scholarly journals A Simple Competing Endogenous RNA Network Identifies Novel mRNA, miRNA, and lncRNA Markers in Human Cholangiocarcinoma

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng Zhang ◽  
Chunlin Ge

Background. Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is the second most common malignant primary liver tumor and has shown an alarming increase in incidence over the last two decades. However, the mechanisms behind tumorigenesis and progression remain insufficient. The present study aimed to uncover the underlying regulatory mechanism on CCA and find novel biomarkers for the disease prognosis. Method. The RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) datasets of lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs in CCA as well as relevant clinical information were obtained from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. After pretreatment, differentially expressed RNAs (DERNAs) were identified and further interrogated for their correlations with clinical information. Prognostic RNAs were selected using univariate Cox regression. Then, a ceRNA network was constructed based on these RNAs. Results. We identified a total of five prognostic DEmiRNAs, 63 DElncRNAs, and 90 DEmRNAs between CCA and matched normal tissues. Integrating the relationship between the different types of RNAs, an lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network was established and included 28 molecules and 47 interactions. Screened prognostic RNAs involved in the ceRNA network included 3 miRNAs (hsa-mir-1295b, hsa-mir-33b, and hsa-mir-6715a), 7 lncRNAs (ENSG00000271133, ENSG00000233834, ENSG00000276791, ENSG00000241155, COL18A1-AS1, ENSG00000274737, and ENSG00000235052), and 18 mRNAs (ANO9, FUT4, MLLT3, ABCA3, FSCN2, GRID2IP, NCK2, MACC1, SLC35E4, ST14, SH2D3A, MOB3B, ACTL10, RAB36, ATP1B3, MST1R, SEMA6A, and SEL1L3). Conclusions. Our study identified novel prognostic makers and predicted a previously unknown ceRNA regulatory network in CCA and may provide novel insight into a further understanding of lncRNA-mediated ceRNA regulatory mechanisms in CCA.

Epigenomics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (13) ◽  
pp. 1501-1518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guansheng Zhong ◽  
Weiyang Lou ◽  
Minya Yao ◽  
Chengyong Du ◽  
Haiyan Wei ◽  
...  

Aim: To identify novel competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network related to patients prognosis in breast cancer. Materials & methods: Dysregulated mRNA based on intersection of three Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets were analyzed by bioinformatics. Results: In total 72 upregulated and 208 downregulated genes were identified. Functional analysis showed that some pathways related to cancer were significantly enriched. By means of stepwise reverse prediction and validation from mRNA to lncRNA, 19 hub genes, nine key miRNA and four key lncRNAs were identified by expression and survival analysis. Ultimately, the coexpression analysis identified RRM2-let-7a-5p- SNHG16/ MAL2 as key ceRNA subnetwork associated with prognosis of breast cancer. Conclusion: We successfully constructed a novel ceRNA network, among which each component was significantly associated with breast cancer prognosis.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (13) ◽  
pp. 837-848 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guohong Liu ◽  
Yunbao Pan ◽  
Yueying Li ◽  
Haibo Xu

Aims: We aimed to find out potential novel biomarkers for prognosis of glioblastoma (GBM). Materials & methods: We downloaded mRNA and lncRNA expression profiles of 169 GBM and five normal samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas and 129 normal brain samples from genotype-tissue expression. We use R language to perform the following analyses: differential RNA expression analysis of GBM samples using ‘edgeR’ package, survival analysis taking count of single or multiple gene expression level using ‘survival’ package, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis using Cox function plugged in ‘survival’ package. Gene ontology and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway analysis were performed using FunRich tool online. Results and conclusion: We obtained differentially DEmRNAs and DElncRNAs in GBM samples. Most prognostically relevant mRNAs and lncRNAs were filtered out. ‘GPCR ligand binding’ and ‘Class A/1’ are found to be of great significance. In short, our study provides novel biomarkers for prognosis of GBM.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junjie Liu ◽  
Wei Lv ◽  
Shuling Li ◽  
Jingwen Deng

Over the past few decades, researchers have become aware of the importance of non-coding RNA, which makes up the vast majority of the transcriptome. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in turn constitute the largest fraction of non-coding transcripts. Increasing evidence has been found for the crucial roles of lncRNAs in both tissue homeostasis and development, and for their functional contributions to and regulation of the development and progression of various human diseases such as cancers. However, so far, only few findings with regards to functional lncRNAs in cancers have been translated into clinical applications. Based on multiple factors such as binding affinity of miRNAs to their lncRNA sponges, we analyzed the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network for the colorectal cancer RNA-seq datasets from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). After performing the ceRNA network construction and survival analysis, the lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 was found to be significantly upregulated in colorectal cancer tissues and associated with the survival of patients. A KCNQ1OT1-related lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA ceRNA network was constructed. A gene set variation analysis (GSVA) indicated that the expression of the KCNQ1OT1 ceRNA network in colorectal cancer tissues and normal tissues were significantly different, not only in the TCGA-COAD dataset but also in three other GEO datasets used as validation. By predicting comprehensive immune cell subsets from gene expression data, in samples grouped by differential expression levels of the KCNQ1OT1 ceRNA network in a cohort of patients, we found that CD4+, CD8+, and cytotoxic T cells and 14 other immune cell subsets were at different levels in the high- and low-KCNQ1OT1 ceRNA network score groups. These results indicated that the KCNQ1OT1 ceRNA network could be involved in the regulation of the tumor microenvironment, which would provide the rationale to further exploit KCNQ1OT1 as a possible functional contributor to and therapeutic target for colorectal cancer.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huxia Wang ◽  
Yanan Tang ◽  
Meixia Wang ◽  
Caixia Ding ◽  
Xiaomin Yang ◽  
...  

Abstract The regulation of vertebrate limb myogenesis gene, Mesenchyme Homeobox 2 (MEOX2), has been reported to be associated with most cancer progression closely. However, its role and function in breast cancer are unidentified. Here, we aim to investigate the association of MEOX2 expression with clinicopathological features and the survival probability of breast cancer. The MEOX2 expression in breast cancer was first analyzed from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Then, the association of MEOX2 with patients’ clinicopathological variables and prognostic probability were detected by bioinformatics analysis. Moreover, a high-throughput tissue microarray containing 135 cases of breast cancer was used to further clarify the expression of MEOX2 in breast cancer patients. The expression of MEOX2 is inhibited in breast cancer than in normal tissues, and the lower MEOX2 expression indicates the poorer prognosis of breast cancer patients. In addition, the histological grade of MEOX2 expression is negatively correlated with the Ki67 level. Multivariate COX regression also verified that MEOX2 was an independent prognostic factor in breast cancer patients. Based on our results, we can conclude that lower MEOX2 expression was related to tumor proliferation and could be a new diagnostic and prognostic biomarker of breast cancer.


PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e6397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shusen Zhang ◽  
Ruoyan Cao ◽  
Qiulan Li ◽  
Mianfeng Yao ◽  
Yu Chen ◽  
...  

Background Increasing evidence has demonstrated that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play an important role in the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks in that they regulate protein-coding gene expression by sponging microRNAs (miRNAs). However, the understanding of the ceRNA network in tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) remains limited. Methods Expression profile data regarding mRNAs, miRNAs and lncRNAs as well as clinical information on 122 TSCC tissues and 15 normal controls from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were collected. We used the edgR package to identify differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs), lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) and miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) between TSCC samples and normal samples. In order to explore the functions of DEmRNAs, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis was performed. Subsequently, a ceRNA network was established based on the identified DElncRNAs–DEmiRNAs and DEmiRNAs–DEmRNAs interactions. The RNAs within the ceRNA network were analyzed for their correlation with overall disease survival. Finally, lncRNAs were specifically analyzed for their correlation with clinical features in the included TSCC patient samples. Results A total of 1867 mRNAs, 828 lncRNAs and 81 miRNAs were identified as differentially expressed in TSCC tissues (—log 2fold change— ≥ 2; adjusted P value <0.01). The resulting ceRNA network included 16 mRNAs, 56 lncRNAs and 6 miRNAs. Ten out of the 56 lncRNAs were found to be associated with the overall survival in TSCC patients (P < 0.05); 10 lncRNAs were correlated with TSCC progression (P < 0.05). Conclusion Our study deepens the understanding of ceRNA network regulatory mechanisms in TSCC. Furthermore, we identified ten lncRNAs (PART1, LINC00261, AL163952.1, C2orf48, FAM87A, LINC00052, LINC00472, STEAP3-AS1, TSPEAR-AS1 and ERVH48-1) as novel, potential prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for TSCC.


2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 1953-1967 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Lin ◽  
Dong-yue Wen ◽  
Qing Li ◽  
Yun He ◽  
Hong Yang ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most prevalent subtype of primary liver tumor worldwide. Growing evidence has led to a consensus that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have considerable influence on tumorigenesis and tumor progression of HCC via the mechanism of competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs). Methods: Here, we systematically investigated the expression landscape and clinical prognostic value of lncRNAs, micorRNAs (miRNAs), and mRNAs from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Differentially expressed RNAs were submitted to Cox regression analysis and the construction of prognostic indexes. A lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network was then constructed based on interaction information derived from miRcode, TargetScan, miRTarBase, and miRDB. Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analyses were performed to reveal and determine the functional roles of the ceRNA network in the prognosis of HCC. Results: We detected 77 differentially expressed lncRNAs, 29 differentially expressed miRNAs, and 1014 differentially expressed mRNAs in HCC, which were significantly associated with the overall survival of patients with HCC. We developed three prognostic prediction models that showed moderate predicting prognosis performance and were highly correlated with tumor burden, histological grade and pathological stage. Additionally, 10 survival-related lncRNAs, 6 survival-related miRNAs, and 31 survival-related mRNAs were included to develop a ceRNA network. Further functional enrichment analysis suggested that the ceRNA network was associated with a dismal prognosis for patients with HCC by disturbing the homeostasis of the cell cycle. Conclusion: Together, our study highlights the significant roles of lncRNAs in the development and implementation of monitoring surveillance and prognosis of HCC and provides a deeper understanding of the lncRNA-related ceRNA regulatory mechanism in the pathogenesis of HCC.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiawu Wang ◽  
Chengyao Zhang ◽  
Yan Wu ◽  
Weiyang He ◽  
Xin Gou

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to investigate the regulatory network of lncRNAs as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) in bladder urothelial carcinoma (BUC) based on gene expression data derived from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Materials and methods RNA sequence profiles and clinical information from 414 BUC tissues and 19 non-tumor adjacent tissues were downloaded from TCGA. Differentially expressed RNAs derived from BUC and non-tumor adjacent samples were identified using the R package “edgeR”. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis was performed using the “clusterProfiler” package. Gene ontology and protein–protein interaction (PPI) networks were analyzed for the differentially expressed mRNAs using the “STRING” database. The network for the dysregulated lncRNA associated ceRNAs was then constructed for BUC using miRcode, miRTarBase, miRDB, and TargetScan. Cox regression analysis was performed to identify independent prognostic RNAs associated with BUC overall survival (OS). Survival analysis for the independent prognostic RNAs within the ceRNA network was calculated using Kaplan–Meier curves. Results Based on our analysis, a total of 666, 1819 and 157 differentially expressed lncRNAs, mRNAs and miRNAs were identified respectively. The ceRNA network was then constructed and contained 59 lncRNAs, 23 DEmiRNAs, and 52 DEmRNAs. In total, 5 lncRNAs (HCG22, ADAMTS9-AS1, ADAMTS9-AS2, AC078778.1, and AC112721.1), 2 miRNAs (hsa-mir-145 and hsa-mir-141) and 6 mRNAs (ZEB1, TMEM100, MAP1B, DUSP2, JUN, and AIFM3) were found to be related to OS. Two lncRNAs (ADAMTS9-AS1 and ADAMTS9-AS2) and 4 mRNA (DUSP2, JUN, MAP1B, and TMEM100) were validated using GEPIA. Thirty key hub genes were identified using the ranking method of degree. KEGG analysis demonstrated that the majority of the DEmRNAs were involved in pathways associated with cancer. Conclusion Our findings provide an understanding of the important role of lncRNA–related ceRNAs in BUC. Additional experimental and clinical validations are required to support our findings.


2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Faping Li ◽  
Hui Guo ◽  
Bin Liu ◽  
Nian Liu ◽  
Zhixiang Xu ◽  
...  

Abstract Bladder cancer (BC) is the most common tumor of the urinary tract. Increasing evidence showed that long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) is a critical regulator in cancer development and progression. However, the functions of lncRNAs in the development of BC remain mostly undefined. In the present study, based on RNA sequence profiles from The Cancer Genome Atlas database, we identified 723 lncRNAs, 157 miRNAs, and 1816 mRNAs aberrantly expressed in BC tissues. A competing endogenous RNA network, including 49 lncRNAs, 17 miRNAs, and 36 mRNAs, was then established. The functional enrichment analyses showed that the mRNAs in the ceRNA network mainly participated in ‘regulation of transcription’ and ‘pathways in cancer’. Moreover, the Cox regression analyses demonstrated that three lncRNAs (AC112721.1, TMPRSS11GP, and ADAMTS9-AS1) could serve as independent risk factors. We established a risk prediction model with these lncRNAs. Kaplan–Meier curve analysis showed that high-risk patients’ prognosis was lower than that of low-risk patients (P=0.001). The present study provides novel insights into the lncRNA-mediated ceRNA network and the potential of lncRNAs to be candidate prognostic biomarkers in BC, which could help better understand the pathological changes and pathogenesis of BC and be useful for clinical studies in the future.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 1061-1071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shengyun Cai ◽  
Pei Zhang ◽  
Suhe Dong ◽  
Li Li ◽  
Jianming Cai ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Ovarian cancer (OC) is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death in women, and it is difficult to diagnose at an early stage. The purpose of this study was to explore the prognostic biological markers of OC. Methods: Univariate Cox regression analysis was used to identify genes related to OC prognosis from the Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA) database. Immunohistochemistry was used to analyse the level of SPINK13 in OC and normal tissues. Cell proliferation, apoptosis and invasion were performed using MTT assay, flow cytometric analysis and Transwell assay, respectively. Results: We identified the Kazal-type serine protease inhibitor-13 (SPINK13) gene related to OC prognosis from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database by univariate Cox regression analysis. Overexpression of SPINK13 was associated with higher overall survival rate in OC patients. Immunohistochemistry showed that the level of SPINK13 protein was significantly lower in OC tissues than in normal tissues (P < 0.05).In vitro experiments showed that the overexpression of SPINK13 inhibited cellular proliferation and promoted apoptosis. Moreover, SPINK13 inhibited cell migration and epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). SPINK13 was found to inhibit the expression of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA), while recombinant uPA protein could reverse the inhibitory effect of SPINK13 on OC metastasis. Conclusion: These results indicate that SPINK13 functions as a tumour suppressor. The role of SPINK13 in cellular proliferation, apoptosis and migration is uPA dependent, and SPINK13 may be used as a potential biomarker for diagnosis and targeted therapy in OC.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Songling Han ◽  
Wei Zhu ◽  
Qijie Guan ◽  
Zhuoheng Zhong ◽  
Ruoke Zhao ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD) is the most common histological type of stomach cancer, which causes a considerable number of deaths worldwide. This study specifically aimed to identify potential biomarkers and reveal the underlying molecular mechanisms. Methods Gene expression profiles microarray data were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The ‘limma’ R package was used to screen the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between STAD and matched normal tissues. The Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) was used for function enrichment analyses of DEGs. The data of STAD cases with both RNA sequencing and clinical information of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were obtained from Genomic Data Commons (GDC) data portal. Survival curves were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method, univariate Cox regression analysis and multivariate Cox regression were performed using ‘survival’ package. CIBERSORT algorithm used approach to characterize the 22 human immune cell composition. Gene expression profiles microarray data and clinical information were downloaded from GEO database to validate prognostic model. Results Three public datasets including 90 STAD patients and 43 healthy controls were used and 44 genes were differentially expressed in all three datasets. These genes were primarily implicated in biological processes including cell adhesion, wound healing and extracellular matrix organization. Seven out of 44 genes showed significant survival differences based on their expression differences. CTHRC1 and LRFN4 were eventually used to constructed risk score and prognostic model by univariate Cox regression and stepwise multivariate Cox regression in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-STAD dataset. The group having high risk scores and the group having low risk scores had significant differences in the infiltration level of multiple immune cells including CD4 memory resting T cells, M2 macrophages, memory B cells, resting dendritic cells, eosinophils, and gamma delta T cells. Multivariate Cox regression analyses indicated that the risk score was an independent predictor after adjusting for age, sex, and tumor stage. At last, the model was verified and evaluated by another independent dataset and showed a good classification effect. Conclusions The present study constructed the prognostic model by expression of CTHRC1 and LRFN4 for the first time via comprehensive bioinformatics analysis, which may provide clinical guidance and potential therapeutic targets for STAD.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document