The role of long non-coding RNAs and circular RNAs in cervical cancer: modulating miRNA function.

Cervical cancer (CC) is a primary global health concern, ranking as the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in women. Despite advancements in prognosis, long-term outcomes remained poor. Beyond HPV, cofactors like dietary deficiencies, immunosuppression, hormonal contraceptives, co-infections, and genetic variations are involved in CC progression. The pathogenesis of various diseases, including cancer, has brought to light the critical regulatory roles of microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs). The aberrant expression of these miRNAs, lncRNAs, and circRNAs plays a pivotal role in the initiation and progression of CC. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the recent literature regarding the involvement of lncRNAs and circRNAs in modulating miRNA functions in cervical neoplasia and metastasis. Studies have shown that lncRNAs and circRNAs hold great potential as therapeutic agents and innovative biomarkers in CC. However, more clinical research is needed to advance our understanding of the therapeutic benefits of circRNAs and lncRNAs in CC.

The effect of encomir-93 mimic transfection on the expression of miR-93 and PSA and androgen receptor in prostate cancer LNcap cell line.

OBJECTIVES: Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men with high mortality rate which is a major concern for men's health. However, the molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. miR-93 is an important oncogene which may have important function in prostate cancer.So, this study aimed to predict that encomir-93 mimic transfection on the expression of miR-93 and PSA and AR in prostate cancer LNcap cell line. METHODS: Lymph node carcinoma of the prostate (LNCaP) was cultured and then miR-93 mimics was designed, synthesized and the transfected to LNCaP. The expression level of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and androgen receptor (AR) was determined via Real-time PCR after treated with 15 pmol of miR-93 mimics. RESULTS: miR-93 mimic transfection led to significant increase in PSA and AR expression in comparison with control group (p≤0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The miR-93 and its target genes has important role in PCa progression via enhancement in PSA and AR expression. Further research on the function of the miR-93 and its target genes in tumorgenesis and progression PCa could be helpful for the treatment of prostate cancer.

Slow release curcumin-containing soy protein nanoparticles as anticancer agents for osteosarcoma: synthesis and characterization.

Curcumin-containing soy protein nanoparticles (curcumin-SPNs) were synthesized by desolvation (coacervation) method and characterized by SEM, DLS, FTIR, and XRD. For anticancer evaluation, osteogenic sarcoma (SAOS2) cell lines were incubated with different concentrations of nanostructures. The dialysis method was used for assessment of drug release. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) were evaluated in IC50 dose after 24 h of exposure to free curcumin and curcumin-SPNs. Characterization data showed that the size of drug-free SPNs and curcumin-SPNs were 278.2 and 294.7 nm, respectively. The zeta potential of drug-free SPNs and curcumin-SPNs were - 37.1 and - 36.51 mv, respectively. There was no significant difference between the control and drug-free SPNs groups in terms of cell viability (p > 0.05). The viability of cells in different concentrations of the designed curcumin-SPNs in Saos2 cell line was significantly higher than free drug (p < 0.05). The release of curcumin showed that more than 50% of the drug was released in the first 2 h of incubation. After this time, the slow release of drug was continued to 62-83% of drug. IC50 values of free curcumin and curcumin-SPNs (1/10) were 156.8 and 65.9 µg/mL, respectively (a free curcumin IC50 was 2.4 times more than curcumin-SPNs). Slow-release of the curcumin causes the cell to be exposed to the anticancer drug for a longer period of time. The intracellular ROS levels significantly increased in an IC50 dose after 24 h of exposure to both free curcumin and curcumin-SPNs compared with controls (p < 0.05).