Unleash Multifunctional Role of Long Noncoding RNAs Biomarker Panel in Breast Cancer: A Predictor Classification Model

Abstract

Aim: We aimed to explore the circulating expression profile of nine lncRNAs (MALAT1, HOTAIR, PVT1, H19, ROR, GAS5, ANRIL, BANCR, MIAT) in breast cancer (BC) patients relative to normal and risky individuals. Methods: Serum relative expressions of the specified long non-coding RNAs were quantified in 155 consecutive women, using quantitative reverse-transcription PCR. Random Forest (RF) and decision tree were also applied. Results: Significant MALAT1 upregulation and GAS5 downregulation could discriminate risky women from healthy controls. Overexpression of the other genes showed good diagnostic performances. Lower GAS5 levels were associated with metastasis and recurrence. RF model revealed a better performance when combining gene expression patterns with risk factors. Conclusion: The studied panel could be utilized as diagnostic/prognostic biomarkers in BC, providing promising epigenetic-based therapeutic targets.

Graphical abstract

Keywords::

• bioinformatics analysis
• biomarkers
• breast cancer
• cancer epigenetics
• gene expression
• lncRNAs
• prognosis
• qRT-PCR

Supplementary data

To view the supplementary data that accompany this paper please visit the journal website at: www.tandfonline.com/doi/suppl/10.2217/epi-2019-0291

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Center of Excellence in Molecular and Cellular Medicine and Oncology Diagnostic Unit, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt for providing the facilities for performing the research work as well as we thank all participants who agree to participate in the current study.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical disclosure

The authors have followed the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all human experimental investigation. The study was approved by the ethics committee at the Suez Canal University, Faculty of Medicine. All involved participants gave written informed consent.

Data sharing statement

The raw data used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.