Neuroblastoma, one of the common malignant childhood tumors, arises from neuroblast cells derived from the neural crest and destined for the adrenal medulla and the sympathetic nervous system and shows remarkable biological heterogeneity, resulting in favorable or unfavorable outcomes. Some tumors make rapid progress with a fatal outcome. In other instances, the tumors regress spontaneously in infants or to differentiate into a benign ganglioneuroma in older patients. This heterogeneity within neuroblastoma depends on the molecular characteristics of tumor cells. Several distinct genomic alterations have been found in neuroblastoma, including MYCN amplification, DNA ploidy, deletion of the short arm of chromosome 1, gain of chromosome 17q, and deletion of 11q. The difference of expression was also found in genes related to cellular growth, differentiation, and apoptosis of neural network including signaling by NTRK1 or ALK receptor tyrosine kinases, and telomerase activity. And this presentation discusses diagnostic and prognostic molecular makers for extensive heterogeneity of neuroblastoma. This should lead to more risk-adapted therapies according to the genetic markers by which individual neuroblastomas are biologically characterized.

Retrotransposons are mobile genetic elements that transpose through reverse transcription of an RNA intermediate. Retrotransposons are ubiquitous in plants and play a major role in plant gene and genome evolution. In many cases, retrotransposons comprise over 50% of nuclear DNA content, a situation that can arise in a few million years. Plant retrotransposons are structur ally and functionally similar to retrotransposons and retroviruses that are found in other eukaryotic organisms. Because of their major share in the genome, retrotransposons can be easily employed as molecular markers. molecular marker primer for PCR reaction is designed based on conserved regions of mobile element DNA. Here, we describe the background and strategies for four major retrotransposon-based markers: SSAP, IRAP, REMAP, and RBIP.

Purpose: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer and the sixth leading cause of cancer death among men worldwide. Biomarkers are an important tool in the early detection of PCa. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is one of the oldest biomarkers for the early detection of PCa. Digital rectal exam (DRE) is another screening test for PCa detection, which is considered as an irritating experience for patients. Biopsy is still the most reliable method for PCa diagnosis,however, patients are prone to complications. Therefore, developing non-invasive and accurate methods for PCa screening seems urgent to avoid unnecessary biopsies. There has been remarkable development in PCa molecular biomarkers discovery, largely through progress in omics technologies. Due to the many benefits of liquid biopsies, a significant set of PCa diagnostic kits have been developed using urine samples. Despite the unique benefits of these kits, there are still many challenges to their widespread use in clinics. Here, we have reviewed the latest developments of PCa biomarkers in liquid biopsies. Methods: Literature on biomarkers for diagnosis of PCa was reviewed during the past two decades. Results: PSA, PHI, PCA3, and 4K score are among the commonly used markers for PCa diagnosis which have been used over a long-moderate length of time with multiple studies on their performance. We performed a review of their performance. Newer markers are among RNA and DNA markers. Multiple non-coding RNAs (mi-RNAs) were reviewed and their performance on Pca diagnosis was reviewed. Long noncoding RNAs (Lnc RNAs) including PlncRNA-1, HOTAIR, SchLAP-1, MALAT1, MEG3, and PRCAT17. 3 were summarized. mRNA markers including TMPRSS2: ERG, and HOXC6 were presented. DNA-based markers including PTEN, HOXB13, and BRCA2 were reviewed. Finally, the use of CircRNAs was reviewed for PCa diagnosis. Conclusion: Many reviewed RNA-based biomarkers have promising results in the diagnosis of PCa