Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Jeddah University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Apr 27;23(9):4855. doi: 10.3390/ijms23094855.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common type of cancer worldwide amongst males and females. CRC treatment is multidisciplinary, often including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Early diagnosis of CRC can lead to treatment initiation at an earlier stage. Blood biomarkers are currently used to detect CRC, but because of their low sensitivity and specificity, they are considered inadequate diagnostic tools and are used mainly for following up patients for recurrence. It is necessary to detect novel, noninvasive, specific, and sensitive biomarkers for the screening and diagnosis of CRC at earlier stages. The tumor microenvironment (TME) has an essential role in tumorigenesis; for example, extracellular vesicles (EVs) such as exosomes can play a crucial role in communication between cancer cells and different components of TME, thereby inducing tumor progression. The importance of miRNAs that are sorted into exosomes has recently attracted scientists' attention. Some unique sequences of miRNAs are favorably packaged into exosomes, and it has been illustrated that particular miRNAs can be directed into exosomes by special mechanisms that occur inside the cells. This review illustrates and discusses the sorted and transported exosomal miRNAs in the CRC microenvironment and their impact on CRC progression as well as their potential use as biomarkers.
结直肠癌(CRC)是男性和女性中全球第三常见的癌症类型。CRC 的治疗是多学科的,通常包括手术、化疗和放疗。CRC 的早期诊断可以导致更早开始治疗。目前使用血液生物标志物来检测 CRC,但由于其敏感性和特异性低,因此被认为是不足够的诊断工具,主要用于监测患者的复发情况。有必要检测新型的、非侵入性的、特异的和敏感的生物标志物,以便在早期阶段进行 CRC 的筛查和诊断。肿瘤微环境(TME)在肿瘤发生中起着重要作用;例如,细胞外囊泡(EVs)如外泌体可以在癌细胞与 TME 的不同成分之间的通讯中发挥关键作用,从而诱导肿瘤进展。最近,科学家们开始关注被分拣到外泌体中的 miRNA 的重要性。一些独特的 miRNA 序列被有利地包装到外泌体中,并且已经表明,特定的 miRNA 可以通过细胞内发生的特殊机制被定向到外泌体中。本综述说明了并讨论了 CRC 微环境中外泌体中分拣和运输的 miRNA 及其对 CRC 进展的影响,以及它们作为生物标志物的潜在用途。