Oncogenic mutations in BRAF and NRAS occur in 70% of melanomas. In this study, we identify a microRNA, miR-146a, that is highly upregulated by oncogenic BRAF and NRAS. Expression of miR-146a increases the ability of human melanoma cells to proliferate in culture and form tumors in mice, whereas knockdown of miR-146a has the opposite effects. We show these oncogenic activities are due to miR-146...

Acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) limits the success of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT); therefore, a better understanding of its biology may improve therapeutic options. We observed miR-146a up-regulation in T cells of mice developing acute GVHD compared with untreated mice. Transplanting miR-146a(-/-) T cells caused increased GVHD severity, elevated tumor necrosi...

In chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL), aberrations along the p53 axis lead to decreased overall survival and therapy resistance. Recent studies identified microRNA-34a (miR-34a) as a major downstream target of p53. We monitored the expression of miR-34a during disease development in a murine B-CLL model. miR-34a was up-regulated more than 20-fold during the leukemic but not during the preleuk...

We investigate the potential association of miR-149C>T and miR-499A>G polymorphisms and the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A matched case-control study of 152 cases and 304 controls were conducted. The miR-149C>T and miR-499A>G genotypes were analyzed using duplex polymerase chain reaction with restricted fragment length polymorphism. HCC patients were more likely to be smokers and dri...

BACKGROUND Several recent studies have explored associations between pre-mir-218 polymorphism (rs11134527) and cancer risk. However, published data are still inconclusive. To obtain a more precise estimation of the relationship in the Chinese population, we carried out a meta-analysis for the first time. MATERIALS AND METHODS Through retrieval from the PubMed, Medline, Embase, Web of Science ...

OBJECTIVE MicroRNAs play a role in atherosclerosis-related diseases, such as cerebrovascular or cardiovascular disease. However, the effect of miR-146a, miR-149, miR-196a2, and miR-499 polymorphisms on stroke and silent brain infarction (SBI) susceptibility has not been reported. METHODS AND RESULTS Using polymerase chain reaction-amplified DNA, microRNA polymorphisms were analyzed in 678 pat...

Single nucleotide polymorphism in microRNAs (miRNA) may influence their target gene selection and regulation efficiency, leading to animal phenotypic variation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the miRNA-1757 gene precursor region (pre-mir-1757) on economic-related traits in chicken. Genotyping was performed using Sequenom MassArray...

BACKGROUND miRNAs have been implicated in numerous tumorigenic pathways, and previous studies have associated miR-202 dysregulation with various cancer types, including follicular lymphoma. METHODS The miR-202 targetome was identified by ribonucleoprotein immunoprecipitation-microarray (RIP-Chip), and functional interactions among identified targets were investigated using the Ingenuity Pathw...

Cancer genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many common genetic markers located in non-coding regions of the genome. Two notable examples are the multi-cancer susceptibility regions, 8q24.2 and 11q13.3. Since these GWAS signals localize to gene-poor regions, we investigated genetic variants within pre-microRNA (pre-miRNA) transcripts as a possible link between the GWAS finding...

Background: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the promoter region of miRNAs may disturb miRNAs processing, alter their expression, and ultimately affect an individual’s susceptibility to cancer. We conducted a case-control study to evaluate the association of rs353293 G>A with the risk of thyroid cancer in the Iranian population. Methods: 192 patients with thyroid cancer including (pap...