Microarray is an efficient tool for circRNA profiling.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as a new class of endogenous and regulatory noncoding RNAs in latest years. With the widespread application of RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) technology and bioinformatics prediction, large numbers of circRNAs have been identified. However, at present, we lack a comprehensive characterization of all these circRNAs in interested samples. In this study, we integrated 87 935 circRNAs sequences that cover most of circRNAs identified till now represented in circBase to design microarray probes targeting back-splice site of each circRNA to profile expression of those circRNAs. By comparing the circRNA detection efficiency of RNA-seq with this circRNA microarray, we revealed that microarray is more efficient than RNA-seq for circRNA profiling. Then, we found ∼80 000 circRNAs were expressed in cervical tumors and matched normal tissues, and ∼25 000 of them were differently expressed. Notably, many of these circRNAs detected by this microarray can be validated by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) or RNA-seq. Strikingly, as many as ∼18 000 circRNAs could be robustly detected in cell-free plasma samples, and the expression of ∼2700 of them differed after surgery for tumor removal. Our findings provided a comprehensive and genome-wide characterization of circRNAs in paired normal tissues and tumors and plasma samples from multiple individuals. In addition, we also provide a rich resource with 41 microarray data sets and 10 RNA-seq data sets and strong evidences for circRNA expression in cervical cancer. In conclusion, circRNAs could be efficiently profiled by circRNA microarray to target their reported back-splice sites in interested samples.

Comparison of survival outcomes between laparoscopic surgery and abdominal surgery for radical hysterectomy as primary treatment in patients with stage IB2/IIA2 cervical cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the long-term oncological outcomes of laparoscopic radical hysterectomy (LRH) and abdominal radical hysterectomy (ARH) for the treatment of stage IB2/IIA2 cervical cancer without preoperative adjuvant therapy. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, retrospective, case-matching study. The differences in overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) between the LRH and ARH were compared under the conditions of real-world study and case-control matching (1:1 matching). RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the outcomes of LRH (n = 580) and ARH (n = 1653) in 5-year OS and DFS (OS: 80.6% vs. 86.1%, p = 0.421; DFS: 78.6% vs. 80.7%, p = 0.376). After 1:1 matching, there was no difference in 5-year OS and DFS between LRH (n = 554) and ARH (n = 554) (OS: 80.4% vs. 84.5%, p = 0.993; DFS: 79.0% vs. 78.8%, p = 0.695). Before and after matching, the surgical approach was not an independent risk factor for 5-year OS and DFS, and postoperative adjuvant therapy affected patient prognosis. Further subgroup analysis suggested that there was no difference in LRH (n = 313) and ARH (n = 1092) in 5-year OS or DFS in patients who underwent standard postoperative adjuvant therapy (OS: 83.0% vs. 87.7%, p = 0.992; DFS: 79.0% vs. 82.5%, p = 0.323). After 1:1 pairing, the 5-year OS and DFS in LRH (n = 295) and ARH (n = 295) showed no difference. Before and after matching, the surgical approach was not an independent risk factor affecting the 5-year OS and DFS. CONCLUSIONS: There was no difference in the oncological outcomes between laparoscopic and abdominal surgery in patients with stage IB2/IIA2 cervical cancer without preoperative adjuvant therapy. CLINICAL TRIALS: The ethical approval number is NFEC-2017-135, and the clinical research registration number is CHiCTR1800017778 (International Clinical Trials Registry Platform Search Port, http://apps.who.int/trialsearch/).

Multichannel piezoelectric genesensor for the detection of human papilloma virus.

OBJECTIVE: To establish a method for rapid detection and sub-typing of human papilloma virus (HPV). METHODS: We utilized the piezoelectric genosensor (PG) technique, which is a combination of the piezoelectric biosensor and gene chips for HPV identification in 22 recurrent biopsy specimens and 22 corresponding original biopsy specimens. The control samples came from normal tissue of healthy persons. A combined reaction took place on the sensor surface between the target genes and probes. The frequency of the piezoelectric sensor will decrease when such reactions occur, and the frequency decrease depends on the concentration of the target gene. Specimens were also analyzed with conventional PCR and dot blot. RESULTS: Of the 22 recurrent specimens, 15 contained HPV6 DNA, 2 HPV11 DNA, and 4 HPV16 DNA. Only one specimen was negative. All the 22 original specimens were positive: 17 harbored HPV6 DNA, 3 sequence homologous HPV11 DNA, and 2 HPV16 DNA. No HPV18 DNA was detected in any specimen. When compared with PCR and dot blot analysis, the results were essentially the same except for one specimen, which was shown to contain other sub-types of HPV. CONCLUSION: Our results show that the piezoelectric genosensor technique is a rapid and specific method to analyze HPV.

Genomewide oligonucleotide microarray analysis on placentae of pre-eclamptic pregnancies.

OBJECTIVE: Human placentae from normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies were evaluated for possible changes in gene expression by microarray analysis to uncover new clues for the research of the etiology of pre-eclampsia. METHODS: Placentae from five normal pregnancies and five pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia were collected. mRNA levels of five pre-eclamptic placentae were examined using genome-wide 70-mer oligonucleotide microarrays (CapitalBio, Beijing, China) in comparison with the pooled control consisting of total RNA from five normotensive placentae. RESULTS: Ninety-six genes were found consistently down- or up-regulated in at least four pre-eclamptic samples. Most of them were related to an imbalance of reactive oxygen metabolites in placenta, abnormal trophoblast invasion, disorders of lipoprotein metabolism and signal transduction, or some that have been reported to have close correlation to the pathology of pre-eclampsia. The microarray data were also confirmed by the measurement of real-time PCR. CONCLUSION: DNA microarray is a high throughput and time-saving method to monitor altered gene expression. The results could provide interesting clues to the etiology of pre-eclampsia and lead to further studies in a more targeted fashion.