MicroRNA-21 as a predictor and prognostic factor for trastuzumab therapy in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive metastatic breast cancer.

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosed worldwide. Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer represents about 20% to 30% of all breast cancers. Trastuzumab is used in the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer. MicroRNA-21 (miR-21) is an oncomiR that acts by inhibiting many tumor-suppressor genes. We analyzed the relative expression levels of serum miR-21 in 20 HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer patients before and after 3 months of treatment with trastuzumab. miR-21 levels decreased with a high significant difference after trastuzumab therapy (P = 0.001). Although miR-21 expression levels were lower in responders than in nonresponders, the difference was not statistically significant ( P = 0.6). Our results demonstrated a significant negative correlation between its basal expression, expression levels after treatment, and time to progression ( P = 0.03 and 0.01, respectively). These results make miR-21 a potential prognostic factor for HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer patients. Additionally, it can be an interesting potential target in therapy using antisense oligonucleotides for miR-21.

The prognostic value of histidine-rich glycoprotein RNA in breast tissue using unmodified gold nanoparticles assay.

The aim of is this study is to explore the role of tissue histidine-rich glycoprotein (HRG) RNA as a promising clinically useful biomarker for breast cancer patients prognosis using nanogold assay. Expression of the HRG RNA was assessed by gold nanoparticles and conventional RT-PCR after purification by magnetic nanoparticles in breast tissue samples. The study included 120 patients, 60 of which were histologically proven breast carcinoma cases, 30 had benign breast lesions and 30 were healthy individuals who had undergone reductive plastic surgery. ER, PR and HER2 status were also investigated. The prognostic significance of tissue HRG RNA expression in breast cancer was explored. The magnetic nanoparticles coated with specific thiol modified oligonucleotide probe were used successfully in purification of HRG RNA from breast tissue total RNAs with satisfactory yield. The developed HRG AuNPs assay had a sensitivity and a specificity of 90 %, and a detection limit of 1.5 nmol/l. The concordance rate between the HRG AuNPs assay with RT-PCR after RNA purification using magnetic nanoparticles was 93.3 %. The median follow-up period was 60 months. Among traditional prognostic biomarkers, HRG was a significant independent prognostic marker in relapse-free survival (RFS). HRG RNA is an independent prognostic marker for breast cancer and can be detected using gold NPs assay, which is rapid, sensitive, specific, inexpensive to extend the value for breast cancer prognosis.

Evaluation of histidine-rich glycoprotein tissue RNA and serum protein as novel markers for breast cancer.

Advances in the field of breast cancer (BC) biomarkers discovery facilitate diagnosis and treatment of BC in its pre-invasive state. While the genetic tissue markers are making significant advances in understanding the molecular basis of BC, serum has long been considered a rich source for biomarkers. So, integrated genomic and proteomic strategies play a huge role in the analytical validation of BC biomarkers and represent a true milestone in the areas of diagnostics and personalized medicine. This study included 60 cases (BC), 30 patients with fibroadenoma and 30 healthy women. Histidine-rich glycoprotein RNA (HRG) tissue expression was analyzed through gene expression-based outcome for breast cancer online algorithm (GOBO) bioinformatic analysis. To confirm our informatics analysis, HRG RNA was detected in breast tissue samples by RT-PCR, and HRG serum protein was estimated by ELISA. GOBO analysis revealed increased HRG RNA expression in all subtypes of BC with relative higher expression in basal subtype and grade 2. We confirmed these findings by HRG tissue RNA with 71.7% sensitivity and 93.3% specificity. HRG serum protein was 86.7% sensitivity and 80% specificity. HRG tissue RNA and serum protein could be considered as promising novel markers for prediction of BC prognosis.