Prognostic role of dysregulated circRNAs in patients with non-small cell lung cancer: a meta-analysis

Diagnostic and prognostic value of serum CircERBB2 level in NSCLC and its correlation with clinicopathological features in NSCLC patients

OBJECTIVE

To explore the relationship between serum circular RNA ERBB2 (CircERBB2) levels and clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODS

In this retrospective study, 87 patients with NSCLC (NSCLC group) and 85 patients with benign lung disease (benign lung disease group) in the First Affiliated Hospital of Yangtze University from March 2016 to February 2019 were enrolled; in addition, another 87 healthy subjects were selected as the control group. Serum levels of CircERBB2, cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA21-1) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in each group were detected, and their relationship with the prognosis of NSCLC patients as well as their diagnostic value was analyzed. The serum CircERBB2 levels in NSCLC patients with different clinicopathological characteristics were compared, and the correlation of serum level of CircERBB2 with CircERBB2 as well as CYFRA21-1 was analyzed.

RESULTS

The serum CircERBB2, CYFRA21-1 and CEA levels in the control group, benign lung disease group and NSCLC group were gradually increased (P<0.05). In the NSCLC group, serum CircERBB2 level was correlated with lymph node metastasis, tumor diameter and TNM stage (P<0.05). The areas under the curve (AUCs) of serum CircERBB2, CYFRA21-1, and CEA in diagnosing NSCLC were 0.871, 0.693, and 0.861, with cut-off values of 2.27, 4.45 ng/mL, and 18.49 ng/mL, respectively. The sensitivity was 80.5%, 65.5%, 78.2%, the specificity was 87.1%, 74.1%, 88.2%, respectively. The AUC and sensitivity of CircERBB2 combined with CEA in diagnosing NSCLC was 0.938 and 94.3%, respectively. The serum CircERBB2 level was positively correlated with CYFRA21-1 and CEA in the NSCLC group (P<0.05); and the levels of the above three serum indexes were significantly higher in the death group than those in the survival group (all P<0.05). The 36-month cumulative survival rate of patients in the CircERBB2 low expression group was longer than that in the CircERBB2 high expression group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

Serum CircERBB2 is highly expressed in NSCLC patients, and closely related to disease progression, so it has good prognostic value.

Plasma Exosomal CircNEK9 Accelerates the Progression of Gastric Cancer via miR-409-3p/MAP7 Axis

BACKGROUND

Exosome-mediated transfer of circular RNAs (circRNAs) is related to gastric cancer (GC) development. CircRNA NIMA-related kinase 9 (circNEK9; hsa_circ_0032683) was reported to be up-regulated in GC.

AIMS

The biological role of circNEK9 and its underlying mechanisms in GC progression were explored.

METHODS

The levels of RNAs and proteins were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot assay. Cell proliferation was assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, colony formation assay, and flow cytometry. Wound healing assay and transwell assays were conducted to analyze cell motility. Intermolecular interaction was verified by dual-luciferase reporter assay and RNA pull-down assay. Animal experiments were used to evaluate the role of circNEK9 in the growth of xenograft tumors in vivo.

RESULTS

CircNEK9 was up-regulated in GC tissues and cell lines. CircNEK9 interference suppressed the proliferation and motility of GC cells. CircNEK9 silencing enhanced microRNA-409-3p (miR-409-3p) level through direct interaction. CircNEK9 silencing-mediated influences on the proliferation and metastasis of GC cells were partly overturned by the interference of miR-409-3p. MiR-409-3p directly interacted with microtubule-associated protein 7 (MAP7) messenger RNA (mRNA). MiR-409-3p-induced effects in GC cells were largely counteracted by the overexpression of MAP7. CircNEK9 silencing blocked GC tumor growth in vivo. Exosome-mediated transfer of circNEK9 promoted the motility of recipient GC cells.

CONCLUSIONS

CircNEK9 accelerated the proliferation, migration, and invasion of GC cells through targeting miR-409-3p/MAP7 axis. Plasma exosomal circNEK9 promoted the migration and invasion of recipient GC cells.

Profiling and bioinformatics analyses reveal differential circular RNA expression in NK/T-cell lymphoma-associated hemophagocytic syndrome

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) may be potential biomarkers or therapeutic targets of hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) due to their high stability, covalently closed structure and implicated roles in gene regulation. The aim of the present study was to determine and characterize the circRNAs from natural killer (NK)/T-cell lymphoma-associated hemophagocytic syndrome (NK/T-LAHS). CircRNA in NK/T-LAHS and healthy control patient serum were assessed using next-generation sequencing (NGS). One hundred and forty-three differentially expressed circRNAs of which 114 were up-regulated and 29 were down-regulated in NK/T-LAHS patients were identified. Next, Gene Ontology (GO) function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses to explore the roles of these circRNAs were utilized, and a microRNA (miRNA) target gene prediction software to predict the interaction of circRNAs and miRNAs was used. Moreover, five circRNAs were then selected as NK/T-LAHS candidate circRNAs which were related to tumors and contained NK/T-LAHS-related miRNA-binding sites. Using real-time PCR, the significant up-regulation of these five circRNAs in NK/T-LAHS patient serum were verified. Together these results show that circRNAs may serve as valuable diagnostic biomarkers of early NK/T-LAHS, with potential therapeutic targets in disease progression.