Role of microRNA-363 during tumor progression and invasion.

Recent progresses in diagnostic and therapeutic methods have significantly improved prognosis in cancer patients. However, cancer is still considered as one of the main causes of human deaths in the world. Late diagnosis in advanced tumor stages can reduce the effectiveness of treatment methods and increase mortality rate of cancer patients. Therefore, investigating the molecular mechanisms of tumor progression can help to introduce the early diagnostic markers in these patients. MicroRNA (miRNAs) has an important role in regulation of pathophysiological cellular processes. Due to their high stability in body fluids, they are always used as the non-invasive markers in cancer patients. Since, miR-363 deregulation has been reported in a wide range of cancers, we discussed the role of miR-363 during tumor progression and metastasis. It has been reported that miR-363 has mainly a tumor suppressor function through the regulation of transcription factors, apoptosis, cell cycle, and structural proteins. MiR-363 also affected the tumor progression via regulation of various signaling pathways such as WNT, MAPK, TGF-ß, NOTCH, and PI3K/AKT. Therefore, miR-363 can be introduced as a probable therapeutic target as well as a non-invasive diagnostic marker in cancer patients.

Evaluating the association between opium abuse, blood lead levels, and the complexity of coronary artery disease.

Opium abuse and exposure to heavy metals elevate the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). Therefore, we aimed to determine the association between opium abuse and blood lead levels (BLLs) and the CAD complexity. We evaluated patients with acute coronary symptoms who underwent coronary angiography, and those with >50% stenosis in at least one of the coronary arteries were included. Furthermore, Synergy between PCI with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery I (SYNTAX I) score and BLLs were measured. Based on the opium abuse, 95 patients were subdivided into opium (45) and control (50) groups. Differences in demographics and CAD risk factors were insignificant between the two groups. The median BLLs were remarkably higher in the opium group than in controls (36 (35.7) and 20.5 µg/dL (11.45), respectively, p = 0.003). We also revealed no significant differences in SYNTAX score between the two groups (15.0 (9.0) and 17.5 (14.0), respectively, p = 0.28). Additionally, we found no significant correlation between BLLs and the SYNTAX scores (p = 0.277 and r = -0.113). Opium abuse was associated with high BLLs. Neither opium abuse nor high BLLs were correlated with the complexity of CAD. Further studies are warranted to establish better the relationship between opium abuse, BLLs, and CAD.

Molecular mechanisms of microRNA-301a during tumor progression and metastasis.

Cancer is known as one of the leading causes of human deaths globally. Late diagnosis is considered as one of the main reasons for the high mortality rate among cancer patients. Therefore, the introduction of early diagnostic tumor markers can improve the efficiency of therapeutic modalities. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have a key role in regulation of cell proliferation and apoptosis. MiRNAs deregulation has been frequently reported during tumor progressions. Since, miRNAs have a high stability in body fluids; they can be used as the reliable non-invasive tumor markers. Here, we discussed the role of miR-301a during tumor progressions. MiR-301a mainly functions as an oncogene via the modulation of transcription factors, autophagy, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and signaling pathways. This review paves the way to suggest miR-301a as a non-invasive marker for the early tumor diagnosis. MiR-301a can also be suggested as an effective target in cancer therapy.