Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta.
Center for Biotechnology, Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, College of Science and Technology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jun 17;22(12):6506. doi: 10.3390/ijms22126506.
Choriocarcinoma (CC), a subtype of trophoblastic disease, is a rare and highly aggressive neoplasm. There are two main CC subtypes: gestational and non-gestational, (so called when it develops as a component of a germ cell tumor or is related to a somatic mutation of a poorly differentiated carcinoma), each with very diverse biological activity. A therapeutic approach is highly effective in patients with early-stage CC. The advanced stage of the disease also has a good prognosis with around 95% of patients cured following chemotherapy. However, advancements in diagnosis and treatment are always needed to improve outcomes for patients with CC. Long non-coding (lnc) RNAs are non-coding transcripts that are longer than 200 nucleotides. LncRNAs can act as oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes. Deregulation of their expression has a key role in tumor development, angiogenesis, differentiation, migration, apoptosis, and proliferation. Furthermore, detection of cancer-associated lncRNAs in body fluids, such as blood, saliva, and urine of cancer patients, is emerging as a novel method for cancer diagnosis. Although there is evidence for the potential role of lncRNAs in a number of cancers of the female genital tract, their role in CC is poorly understood. This review summarizes the current knowledge of lncRNAs in gestational CC and how this may be applied to future therapeutic strategies in the treatment of this rare cancer.
绒癌（CC）是一种滋养细胞疾病的亚型，是一种罕见且高度侵袭性的肿瘤。有两种主要的 CC 亚型：妊娠性和非妊娠性（当它作为生殖细胞肿瘤的一部分发展或与未分化癌的体细胞突变有关时称为非妊娠性），每种亚型的生物学活性都非常多样化。早期 CC 患者的治疗方法非常有效。晚期疾病的预后也很好，约 95%的患者经化疗治愈。然而，为了提高 CC 患者的治疗效果，始终需要在诊断和治疗方面取得进展。长链非编码（lnc）RNA 是长度大于 200 个核苷酸的非编码转录本。lncRNA 可以作为癌基因或肿瘤抑制基因发挥作用。其表达失调在肿瘤的发生、血管生成、分化、迁移、凋亡和增殖中起着关键作用。此外，在癌症患者的体液（如血液、唾液和尿液）中检测到与癌症相关的 lncRNA，正在成为癌症诊断的一种新方法。尽管有证据表明 lncRNA 在许多女性生殖道癌症中具有潜在作用，但它们在 CC 中的作用仍知之甚少。这篇综述总结了 lncRNA 在妊娠性 CC 中的作用，以及这可能如何应用于治疗这种罕见癌症的未来治疗策略。
