Lung microRNAs Expression in Lung Cancer and COPD: A Preliminary Study
Davida Mirra,
Renata Esposito,
Giuseppe Spaziano,
Chiara La Torre,
Cristina Vocca,
Martina Tallarico,
Erika Cione,
Luca Gallelli,
Bruno D’Agostino
Affiliations
Davida Mirra
Department of Environmental Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Renata Esposito
Department of Environmental Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Giuseppe Spaziano
Department of Environmental Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Chiara La Torre
Department of Pharmacy, Health and Nutritional Sciences-Department of Excellence 2018–2022, University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, Italy
Cristina Vocca
Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacovigilance Unit, Department of Health Sciences, Mater Domini Hospital, University of “Magna Graecia”, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Martina Tallarico
Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacovigilance Unit, Department of Health Sciences, Mater Domini Hospital, University of “Magna Graecia”, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Erika Cione
Department of Pharmacy, Health and Nutritional Sciences-Department of Excellence 2018–2022, University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, Italy
Luca Gallelli
Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacovigilance Unit, Department of Health Sciences, Mater Domini Hospital, University of “Magna Graecia”, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Bruno D’Agostino
Department of Environmental Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81100 Caserta, Italy
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the deadliest diseases worldwide and represents an impending burden on the healthcare system. Despite increasing attention, the mechanisms underlying tumorigenesis in cancer-related diseases such as COPD remain unclear, making novel biomarkers necessary to improve lung cancer early diagnosis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNA that interfere with several pathways and can act as oncogenes or tumor suppressors. This study aimed to compare miRNA lung expression between subjects with NSCLC and COPD and healthy controls to obtain the miRNA expression profile by analyzing shared pathways. Lung specimens were collected from a prospective cohort of 21 sex-matched subjects to determine the tissue miRNA expression of hsa-miR-34a-5p, 33a-5p, 149-3p, 197-3p, 199-5p, and 320a-3p by RT-PCR. In addition, an in silico prediction of miRNA target genes linked to cancer was performed. We found a specific trend for has-miR-149-3p, 197-3p, and 34a-5p in NSCLC, suggesting their possible role as an index of the tumor microenvironment. Moreover, we identified novel miRNA targets, such as the Cyclin-Dependent Kinase (CDK) family, linked to carcinogenesis by in silico analysis. In conclusion. this study identified lung miRNA signatures related to the tumorigenic microenvironment, suggesting their possible role in improving the evaluation of lung cancer onset.
