Abstract
Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor, usually arising in the long bones of adolescents and young adults. While our knowledge of the molecular pathogenesis of OS has increased in recent years, we are still far from a comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms of the disease, such as its tumorigenesis, specific mediators of disease progression, occurrence of chemoresistance, and development of metastasis. After the recent discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs), their critical roles in molecular biological processes have been of great interest in the cancer research field, including research on sarcomas. MiRNAs are highly conserved noncoding RNAs which play important roles as oncogenic or suppressive genes to simultaneously regulate multiple targets. Recent genome-wide screening using miRNA expression profiles has identified specific miRNA expression patterns that are associated with the biological and clinical properties of cancers. Additionally, miRNAs and their target genes or proteins can be potential novel biomarkers or therapeutic targets for cancer. However, there are several challenges that must be addressed in order to translate miRNA-based therapeutics to the clinical setting. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the roles that miRNAs play in OS, and highlight their potential as biomarkers or therapeutic targets.
Highlights
Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor with an incidence of 4 to 5 cases per million, mainly arising from the metaphysis of the long bones of adolescents and young adults [1]
While our knowledge of the molecular pathogenesis of OS has increased in recent years, we are still far from a comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms of the disease, such as its tumorigenesis, specific mediators of disease progression, occurrence of chemoresistance, and development of metastasis
The recent differences in the miRNA expression profiles detected between cancer cells and their normal counterparts have revealed that miRNAs are involved in the pathogenesis of cancer [7]
Summary
Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor with an incidence of 4 to 5 cases per million (approximately 900 newly diagnosed cases per year in the United States), mainly arising from the metaphysis of the long bones of adolescents and young adults [1]. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are noncoding small RNAs, usually 18–25 nucleotides in length, which repress translation and cleave mRNA by base-pairing to the 3 untranslated region of the target genes (Figure 1). They have the potential to regulate various critical biological processes, including the differentiation, progression, apoptosis, and proliferation of tumor cells [3]. MiRNAs may play multiple roles as tumor suppressors, oncogenes, or both in some cases [8] These biological properties of miRNAs may make them useful as diagnostic and prognostic tools in various cancers, including. We summarize the current knowledge regarding the involvement of miRNAs in OS (Table 1), with a focus on their potential application as therapeutic targets
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