Li Yang, Zhong Hui, Luo Lan, Gan Mei, Liang Li, Que Lilin, Zheng Shaojun, Zhong Jinghua, Liang Leifeng
Department of Pharmacy, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, The First People's Hospital of Yulin, Yulin, China.
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, The First People's Hospital of Yulin, Yulin, China.
Transl Cancer Res. 2024 Aug 31;13(8):4372-4388. doi: 10.21037/tcr-24-263. Epub 2024 Aug 8.
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is particularly prevalent in East and Southeast Asia. Competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks are known to play an essential role in the emergence of various diseases, including cancer. Building a network of protein-protein interactions (PPIs) and ceRNAs can facilitate the detection of potential connections between messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and various non-coding RNAs. However, the precise role of ceRNA networks in NPC has not been examined in detail. Therefore, the primary aim of the present study was to characterize a ceRNA network for NPC.
Datasets of microRNA (miRNA), long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), and mRNA microarrays were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Data were standardized and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened using the limma package. The ClusterProfiler software suite was used to perform enrichment analysis of differentially expressed mRNAs using Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) techniques.
A total of 160 lncRNAs, 8 miRNAs, and 147 mRNAs were differentially expressed in NPC samples. A ceRNA network was constructed using four lncRNAs, five miRNAs, and one mRNA that were dysregulated in NPC. Cellular functions of the abnormally expressed mRNAs were mainly associated with tumor cell movement, cell growth and proliferation, cell cycle, invasion, and metastasis.
The ceRNA network constructed herein clarified the regulatory mechanisms through which lncRNAs act as ceRNAs and participate in NPC development. Notably, lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs identified in this ceRNA network can serve as therapeutic targets and prognostic biomarkers for NPC.
鼻咽癌（NPC）在东亚和东南亚地区尤为普遍。已知竞争性内源性RNA（ceRNA）网络在包括癌症在内的各种疾病的发生中起着至关重要的作用。构建蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用（PPI）和ceRNA网络有助于检测信使RNA（mRNA）与各种非编码RNA之间的潜在联系。然而，ceRNA网络在NPC中的具体作用尚未得到详细研究。因此，本研究的主要目的是描绘NPC的ceRNA网络。
从基因表达综合数据库（GEO）下载微小RNA（miRNA）、长链非编码RNA（lncRNA）和mRNA微阵列数据集。对数据进行标准化处理，并使用limma软件包筛选差异表达基因（DEG）。利用ClusterProfiler软件套件，采用基因本体论（GO）、京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）和基因集富集分析（GSEA）技术对差异表达的mRNA进行富集分析。
NPC样本中共有160个lncRNA、8个miRNA和147个mRNA差异表达。利用NPC中失调的4个lncRNA、5个miRNA和1个mRNA构建了ceRNA网络。异常表达的mRNA的细胞功能主要与肿瘤细胞运动、细胞生长和增殖、细胞周期、侵袭和转移有关。
本文构建的ceRNA网络阐明了lncRNA作为ceRNA参与NPC发生发展的调控机制。值得注意的是，该ceRNA网络中鉴定出的lncRNA、miRNA和mRNA可作为NPC的治疗靶点和预后生物标志物。
