Background: Lung cancer is the leading cause of death, related to cancer in both men and women. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play key roles in regulating the genes that are responsible for apoptosis, and regulation of gene expression. MicroRNA expression is deregulated in cancer. Many efforts have been made to detect cancer biomarkers. Extracellular miRNAs, which are directly released from tumors, can be detected in circulating blood. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the expression of miRNA-205 and-21 in lung cancer patients relative to healthy controls. Methods: This cross sectional study was performed in 50 healthy blood sample controls and 50 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) blood samples. The expression of two miRNAs (miR-21 and miR-205) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was evaluated, using real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) techniques. Statistical tests were carried out via the Mann-Whitney test. Results: The miR-205 levels of expression in the patients with lung cancer significantly increased in comparison to healthy controls (6. 8  0. 42 and 1. 2  0. 19, respectively), (P = 0. 014). The expression of miR-21 in lung cancer (5. 2  0. 52) significantly increased compared to the control group (1. 6 0. 14) (P < 0. 001). Conclusions: Based on our findings, lung cancer can enhance the ectopic expression of several miRNAs, which, in turn, play key roles in impaired apoptosis and further cancerous progression.

The recent generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from somatic cells provides an invaluable resource for drug or toxicology screening, medical research, and patient-specific cell therapy. However, the mechanisms underlying reprogramming still remain largely unknown. Reprogramming is a gradual process in which a small fraction of transduced cells undergo global changes in gene expression profiles, histone modification and DNA methylation patterns, while the majority of cells do not fully reprogram and remain in a partially reprogrammed state. MicroRNAs which are ~22 nucleotide single-stranded RNA molecules, have emerged as important regulators of gene expression and also appear to converge with the core regulatory circuitry controlling self-renewal and pluripotency in ES cells. To investigate the role of miRNAs in the process of reprogramming, we defined the set of miRNAs expressed during different stages of mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) reprogramming by deep sequencing. We found a subset of miRNAs that are differentially expressed in MEF, intermediate cells and iPSCs. Significant differences in the expression level of some miRNAs in different stages of reprogramming suggest that these molecules, along with other regulators of gene expression, might have a role in de-differentioan of somatic cells. We are currently testing the role of a selective set of miRNAs in reprogramming by a variety of methods.

Background: Detecting non-small-cell lung cancer at an early stage has become a great challenge due to the lack of a specific non-invasive marker. MicroRNAs are small, non-coding RNA molecules that play a role in carcinogenesis and cancer progression, as indicated by their abnormal expression in the patients’ plasma. Herein, we investigated the plasma level of circulating miRNA-30a and miRNA-221 as non-invasive markers for an early detection of non-small-cell lung cancer. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Assiut University Hospital, Egypt, to investigate miRNA-30a and miRNA-221 expression via quantitative real-time PCR in the plasma of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (n=70) and healthy controls (n=34). Receiver operating curves were used to evaluate the diagnostic value of miRNA-221 and miRNA-30a in non-small-cell lung cancer. The relationship between both markers and patient clinical parameters was further assessed. Result: Circulating plasma miRNA-30a and miRNA-221 levels were significantly higher in the non-small-cell lung cancer patients compared with those in the healthy controls (P<0. 05). There was a significant difference regarding the plasma miRNA-30a level among the three groups (the highest levels were recorded in adenocarcinoma, followed by large cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma). ROC curve analysis of miRNA-30a and miRNA-221 showed that specificity and sensitivity were 60% and 80%, and 40% and 75%, respectively. Conclusion: miRNA-30a and miRNA-221 may be non-invasive biomarkers for early detection and screening or therapeutic targets in patients with NSCLC. Future studies are warranted regarding the use of biomarkers as therapeutic targets.