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01-01-2013 | Clinical Study

MiR-21 expression in the tumor cell compartment holds unfavorable prognostic value in gliomas

Authors: Simon Kjær Hermansen, Rikke Hedegaard Dahlrot, Boye Schnack Nielsen, Steinbjørn Hansen, Bjarne Winther Kristensen

Published in: Journal of Neuro-Oncology | Issue 1/2013

Abstract

High-grade gliomas are some of the most lethal forms of human cancer, and new clinical biomarkers and therapeutic targets are highly needed. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a group of short noncoding RNAs, hold great potential as new biomarkers and targets as they are commonly deregulated in a variety of diseases including gliomas. MicroRNA-21 (miR-21) is the most consistently overexpressed miRNA in several cancers including gliomas and is therefore very promising as a useful clinical biomarker and therapeutic target. To better understand the role of miR-21 in gliomas, paraffin-embedded glioma tissue samples from 193 patients with grade I, II, III, and IV tumors were analyzed by in situ hybridization (ISH) using LNA-DNA chimeric probes. We found miR-21 expression in tumor cells and tumor-associated blood vessels, whereas no expression was seen in adjacent normal brain parenchyma. Using advanced image analysis we obtained quantitative estimates reflecting the miR-21 expression levels in each of these compartments. The miR-21 levels correlated significantly with grade [p = 0.027, r _s = 0.161, 95 % confidence interval (CI), 0.015–0.301] with the highest levels measured in glioblastomas. Only tumor cell miR-21 was associated with poor prognosis when adjusting for known clinical parameters (age, grade, and sex) in a multivariate analysis [p = 0.049, hazard ratio (HR) = 1.545, 95 % CI, 1.002–2.381]. In conclusion, we have shown that miR-21 is located in both tumor cells and tumor blood vessels and that its level in the tumor cell compartment holds unfavorable prognostic value in gliomas.

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Title: MiR-21 expression in the tumor cell compartment holds unfavorable prognostic value in gliomas
Authors: Simon Kjær Hermansen
Rikke Hedegaard Dahlrot
Boye Schnack Nielsen
Steinbjørn Hansen
Bjarne Winther Kristensen
Publication date: 01-01-2013
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Neuro-Oncology / Issue 1/2013
Print ISSN: 0167-594X
Electronic ISSN: 1573-7373
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11060-012-0992-3

At a glance: The STEP trials

Springer Medicine

MiR-21 expression in the tumor cell compartment holds unfavorable prognostic value in gliomas

Abstract

At a glance: The STEP trials

Springer Medicine

Abstract

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Acknowledgement of reviewers 2011