Abstract:
Objective To search for suitable exosomal microRNAs (miRNAs) as tumor biomarkers to assist in the clinical screening of gastric cancer.
Methods The differential expression of miR-148a and miR-106a in cancer and para-carcinoma tissues were determined to assess their potential as biomarkers. These two serum exosomal miRNAs were detected to compare their differential expression in gastric cancer patients and a control group. A total of 37 pairs of postoperative specimens (gastric cancer tissue and para-carcinoma tissue) from gastric cancer patients diagnosed and treated in Fujian Provincial Hospital from September 2017 to September 2018 were selected for histological miRNA detection. Eighty-three patients with newly diagnosed gastric cancer were selected as the gastric cancer group and 78 patients with benign lesions were selected as the control group.
Results Compared with the adjacent tissues, the expression level of miR-148a decreased, the expression level of miR-106a increased, and the value of 2-△△CP (△CP=CP(miR-148a)-CP(miR-106a)) decreased in cancer tissues. Compared with the control group, the expression level of serum exosomal miR-106a decreased and the value of 2-△△CP (△CP=CP(miR-148a)-CP(miR-106a)) increased in patients with gastric cancer. The area under the curve of 0.844 (95% CI: 0.782-0.905, P < 0.001) of 2-△△CP by the combined detection of serum exosomal miRNAs was greater than that of serum exosomal miR-148a or serum exosomal miR- 106a detected separately in distinguishing the gastric cancer and control groups. The cutoff value of 2-△△CP(△ CP=CP(miR-148a)-CP(miR-106a)) was 0.3153, the sensitivity was 91%, and the specificity was 64.1%.
Conclusions The 2-△△CP value of the detection of serum exosomal miR-148a combined with miR-106a could be useful in screening for gastric cancer.