Down-regulation of miR-92 in human plasma is a novel marker for acute leukemia patients.
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 19440243.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0005532 and PMC identifier 2678255.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: MicroRNAs are a family of 19- to 25-nucleotides noncoding small RNAs that primarily function as gene regulators. Aberrant microRNA expression has been described for several human malignancies, and this new class of small regulatory RNAs has both oncogenic and tumor suppressor functions. Despite this knowledge, there is little information regarding microRNAs in plasma especially because microRNAs in plasma, if exist, were thought to be digested by RNase. Recent studies, however, have revealed that microRNAs exist and escape digestion in plasma. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We performed microRNA microaray to obtain insight into microRNA deregulation in the plasma of a leukemia patient. We have revealed that microRNA-638 (miR-638) is stably present in human plasmas, and microRNA-92a (miR-92a) dramatically decreased in the plasmas of acute leukemia patients. Especially, the ratio of miR-92a/miR-638 in plasma was very useful for distinguishing leukemia patients from healthy body. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The ratio of miR-92a/miR-638 in plasma has strong potential for clinical application as a novel biomarker for detection of leukemia.
Medical subject headings
- Leukemia
- MicroRNAs