Potential biomarker for screening nasopharyngeal carcinoma: three-microRNA panel in serum.

Abstract

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a prevalent form of cancer in Southeast Asia, characterized by distinctive epidemiological attributes, and its occurrence is influenced by factors such as race, age, and gender. Prior research has highlighted the potential of serum microRNA (miRNA) profiling as a non-invasive biomarker for cancer detection. The objective of this study was to ascertain the miRNAs that are specifically linked to the diagnosis of NPC.

Methods: A three-phase study was conducted, involving a total of 112 participants (56 NPC patients and 56 healthy controls). Reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was employed to measure the expression levels of miRNAs in NPCs and healthy controls (HCs). The diagnostic capability of serum miRNAs for NPCs was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and the area under the ROC curve (AUC). Furthermore, a diagnostic panel consisting of three miRNAs with high efficiency was constructed using inverse stepwise logistic regression. In addition, we investigated the biological functions of candidate miRNAs.

Results: When compared to healthy controls, the blood of NPC patients had significantly dysregulated levels of five miRNAs (hsa-miR-363-3p, hsa-miR-106a-5p, hsa-miR-20b-5p, hsa-miR-200a-3p, hsa-miR-200b-3p). In order to create the diagnostic panels, hsa-miR-20b-5p, hsa-miR-200b-3p and hsa-miR-106a-5p were used. The panel's AUC was 0.925 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.858-0.967; P<0.001; sensitivity: 94.64%; specificity: 76.92%]. According to the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) database results, the target genes AFAP1L1, GPT2, PPP1R12B, PRNP and SGIP1 in the three-miRNA panel were good candidates.

Conclusions: Our three-miRNA panel (hsa-miR-20b-5p, hsa-miR-200b-3p and hsa-miR-106a-5p) is anticipated to be a promising non-invasive biomarker for NPC screening and diagnosis.