The effects of Quercetin on microRNAs expression in the breast cancer cell lines: A systematic review

Abstract

Although standard therapeutic modalities have significantly improved the treatment of patients with Breast Cancer (BC), BC is the most common leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Evidence indicates that Quercetin could inhibit signal transduction, induce cancer cell apoptosis, and suppress proliferation, invasion, and metastases of tumor cells via regulation of microRNA (miRNA) expression. Hence, this study was conducted to systematically assess the effect of Quercetin on miRNA expression in BC cell lines.

A comprehensive search of electronic databases including Scopus, Cochrane Library, PubMed, and Web of Science was conducted with keywords (i.e., “MicroRNA”,” Quercetin”, “Normal tissue”, “Breast cancer”, “Cell line”, “Apoptosis”, “Survival”, “Prognosis”, “Up-regulation”, “Down-regulation”, “Proliferation”, “Overexpression”, and “Lower expression”) to identify relative articles published until August 2023. Studies that investigated the effects of Quercetin on BC cell lines were included. Data regarding miRNA expression and cell survival were extracted.

Initially, 6753 studies were retrieved, of which 14 met inclusion criteria. Accordingly, 2 studies were included in the final assessment. The findings of 2 studies revealed that Quercetin could inhibit the progression of BC cell lines through up-regulation of the miR-146a in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines, and down-regulation of miR-21 in MCF-7 cells.

Our study showed that the inhibition role of Quercetin on BC cell line could be provided via miRNA expression.