Chattopadhyay Trisha, Biswal Priyajit, Lalruatfela Anthony, Mallick Bibekanand
RNAi and Functional Genomics Lab., Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela 769008, Odisha, India.
RNAi and Functional Genomics Lab., Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela 769008, Odisha, India.
Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer. 2022 Sep;1877(5):188772. doi: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2022.188772. Epub 2022 Aug 2.
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) are among the well-known neoplasms originating in the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx. Despite advancements in chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery, the survival rates of the patients are low, which has posed a major therapeutic challenge. A growing number of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), for instance, microRNAs, have been identified whose abnormal expression patterns have been implicated in HNSCC. However, more recently, several seminal research has shown that piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), a promising and young class of small ncRNA, are linked to the emergence and progression of cancer. They can regulate transposable elements (TE) and gene expression through multiple mechanisms, making them potentially more powerful regulators than miRNAs. Hence, they can be more promising ncRNAs candidates for cancer therapeutic intervention. Here, we surveyed the roles and clinical implications of piRNAs and their PIWI proteins partners in tumorigenesis and associated molecular processes of cancer, with a particular focus on HNSCC, to offer a new avenue for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic interventions for the malignancy, improving patient's outcomes.
头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）是起源于口腔、咽和喉的著名肿瘤之一。尽管化疗、放疗和手术取得了进展，但患者的生存率仍然很低，这构成了重大的治疗挑战。越来越多的非编码RNA（ncRNA），例如微小RNA，已被发现其异常表达模式与HNSCC有关。然而，最近的一些开创性研究表明，Piwi相互作用RNA（piRNA）是一类有前途的新型小ncRNA，与癌症的发生和发展有关。它们可以通过多种机制调节转座元件（TE）和基因表达，使其可能比微小RNA更强大的调节因子。因此，它们可能是更有前途的癌症治疗干预ncRNA候选物。在这里，我们综述了piRNA及其PIWI蛋白伴侣在肿瘤发生和癌症相关分子过程中的作用和临床意义，特别关注HNSCC，为这种恶性肿瘤的诊断、预后和治疗干预提供新途径，改善患者的治疗效果。
