Department of Biochemistry, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan.
Liver Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan.
Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Nov 24;19(12):3742. doi: 10.3390/ijms19123742.
The tumor microenvironment is an important concept that defines cancer development not only through tumor cells themselves but also the surrounding cellular and non-cellular components, including stromal cells, blood vessels, infiltrating inflammatory cells, cancer stem cells (CSC), cytokines, and growth factors, which act in concert to promote tumor cell survival and metastasis. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common and aggressive human malignancies worldwide. Poor prognosis is largely attributable to the high rate of tumor metastasis, highlighting the importance of identifying patients at risk in advance and developing novel therapeutic targets to facilitate effective intervention. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) are a class of non-protein coding transcripts longer than 200 nucleotides frequently dysregulated in various cancer types, which have multiple functions in widespread biological processes, including proliferation, apoptosis, metastasis, and metabolism. lncRNAs are involved in regulation of the tumor microenvironment and reciprocal signaling between cancer cells. Targeting of components of the tumor microenvironment or cancer cells has become a considerable focus of therapeutic research and establishing the effects of different lncRNAs on this network should aid in the development of effective treatment strategies. The current review provides a summary of the essential properties and functional roles of known lncRNAs associated with the tumor microenvironment in HCC.
肿瘤微环境是一个重要的概念，它不仅通过肿瘤细胞本身，还通过周围的细胞和非细胞成分来定义癌症的发展，包括基质细胞、血管、浸润性炎症细胞、癌症干细胞 (CSC)、细胞因子和生长因子，它们协同作用促进肿瘤细胞的存活和转移。肝细胞癌 (HCC) 是全球最常见和侵袭性的人类恶性肿瘤之一。预后不良主要归因于肿瘤转移率高，这凸显了提前识别风险患者和开发新的治疗靶点以促进有效干预的重要性。长链非编码 RNA (lncRNA) 是一类长度超过 200 个核苷酸的非蛋白编码转录本，在各种癌症类型中经常失调，在广泛的生物学过程中具有多种功能，包括增殖、凋亡、转移和代谢。lncRNA 参与肿瘤微环境的调节和癌细胞之间的相互信号传递。肿瘤微环境或癌细胞成分的靶向已成为治疗研究的一个重要焦点，确定不同 lncRNA 对该网络的影响应有助于开发有效的治疗策略。本综述总结了与 HCC 肿瘤微环境相关的已知 lncRNA 的基本特性和功能作用。
