Role of miRNA-145 in diagnosis and treatment of Breast Cancer

Abstract

Cancer is still one of the most important challenges to health worldwide, with an ever-increasing incidence rate for different kinds of cancers, especially respiratory and colorectal cancers. While early diagnosis and appropriate treatment are imperative, conventional therapies mostly suffer from a lack of specificity and resulting side effects. microRNAs have emerged as critical regulators of gene expression and potential therapeutic target in cancer. The current study has emphasized miR-145, a well-established tumor suppressor whose expression is reportedly downregulated in the majority of malignancies, including breast cancer. We investigate here the functionality of miR-145 in regulating oncogenes due to their involvement in tumor progression. A combined approach of different molecular techniques has been employed in the study for analyzing the expression levels of miR-145 and their interaction with target genes such as fascin-1, c-myc, SMAD2/3, and IGF-1R. Here, we report that miR-145 significantly decreases the proliferative and migratory capability of breast cancer models both in vitro and in vivo, especially in combination with classic chemotherapy agents such as 5-fluorouracil. We further investigate the translational potential of miR-145 delivery using adenoviral vectors and point out the potential for increasing anti-tumor effects. The present study will further describe miR-145 in regulating breast cancer and its potential as a biomarker and therapeutic target in depth and thereby provide contributions to the advance of miRNA-based strategies for cancer therapy.