Abstract
Salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) is a common type of salivary gland cancer. The poor long-term prognosis of patients with SACC is primarily due to local recurrence, distant metastasis and perineural invasion. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified as important post-transcriptional regulators, which are involved in various biological processes. The aim of the present study was to identify the miRNA expression profiles that are involved in the metastatic progression of SACC. Therefore, microarray technology was employed to identify miRNA expression profiles in an SACC cell line, ACC-2, and a highly metastatic SACC cell line, ACC-M, which was screened from ACC-2 by a combination of in vivo selection and cloning in vitro. Differences in miRNA expression were assessed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay. In addition, the potential target genes that are regulated by selected miRNAs were analyzed by various target prediction tools. The microarray data revealed that the levels of 38 miRNAs significantly differed between the ACC-M cells and the control ACC-2 cells. Six miRNAs (miR-4487, -4430, -486-3p, -5191, -3131 and -211-3p) were selected to validate the microarray data via qPCR. The expression of two miRNAs (miR-4487 and -4430) was significantly upregulated in the ACC-M cells, while the expression of two other miRNAs (miR-5191 and -3131) was significantly downregulated in the ACC-M cells. The potential target genes that were identified to be controlled by the six selected miRNAs were divided into four groups according to function, as follows: Apoptosis and proliferation (46 genes), cell cycle (30 genes), DNA damage and repair (24 genes) and signaling pathway (30 genes). The identification of microRNA expression profiles in highly metastatic SACC cells may provide an improved understanding of the mechanisms involved in metastatic progression, which would aid in the development of novel strategies for the treatment of SACC.
Highlights
Salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) is a frequent subtype of salivary gland malignancy accounting for 25% of malignant tumors in the major salivary glands [1] and 50% in the minor glands [2]
Analysis of the quality of RNA isolated from ACC‐2 and ACC‐M cells
RNA that was isolated from the ACC‐2 and ACC‐M cells exhibited clear bands of 28S rRNA and 18S rRNA (Fig. 1)
Summary
Salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) is a frequent subtype of salivary gland malignancy accounting for 25% of malignant tumors in the major salivary glands [1] and 50% in the minor glands [2]. Various treatment options have been extensively investigated, the poor long‐term prognosis for patients with SACC is primarily due to local recurrence associated with perineural invasion (PNI) and delayed onset of distant metastasis, to the lungs [3,4]. It is necessary to identify and understand the diverse mechanisms behind metastasis so as to improve the treatment strategies for SACC patients. Genomic and proteomic studies have yielded various novel insights into molecular targets and the mechanisms of SACC metastasis [5,6]. A number of mechanisms underlying the distant metastasis of SACC have been described, including the Notch gene family, matrix metalloproteinases, nerve growth factor, and vascular endothelial growth factor [7,8,9,10,11,12]. The mechanisms of distant metastasis are complicated and remain obscure; further elucidation is required
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
