Evaluation of the Diagnostic Potential of Circulating MicroRNAs miR-1 and miR-21 in Patients With Ovarian Cancer

Abstract

Background/aim: MicroRNA (miR) is implicated in the development of ovarian cancer (OC), the emergence of therapy resistance, and metastatic spread. In the past decade, a variety of relevant miRs have been identified in the context of OC, including miR-1 and miR-21. miR-21 plays a crucial role in OC carcinogenesis via activation of phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase signaling and development of platinum resistance, and has prognostic value. miR-1 has been identified as a tumor suppressor across various cancer entities, with reduced expression in malignant tissue compared to benign. This evidence highlights the potential of miR-1 and miR-21 to serve as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in OC.

Patients and methods: We studied the diagnostic potential of serum expression of miR-1 and miR-21 in a cohort comprising patients with malignant and benign ovarian tumors. Furthermore, levels of miR expression were analyzed with regard to clinical outcomes in patients with malignant ovarian tumors to evaluate their prognostic value.

Results: We identified significant differential expression of miR-1 (p=0.0397) and miR-21 (p=0.0154) in malignant and benign ovarian tumors: Higher expression of miR-1 was found in patients with benign ovarian tumors, whereas expression of miR-21 was higher in patients with malignant ovarian tumors. In receiver operating characteristic analyses, the diagnostic potential of both miRs was confirmed, however, diagnostic significance was inferior to that of cancer antigen 125. No further value, in particular no prognostic value, was obtained for miR-1 and miR-21 in patients with malignant ovarian tumors.

Conclusion: Serum levels of miR-1 and miR-21 might serve as promising biomarkers in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

Keywords: Diagnostic biomarker; miR-1; miR-21; miRNA; ovarian cancer.