MetastamiRs: The Role of MicroRNAs in the Metastatic Phenotype of Prostate Cancer
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
ABSTRACT
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs that post-transcriptionally regulate protein expression. The human genome encodes more than 2,500 miRNAs, with each being able to modulate several targets, act along a variety of cellular pathways, and affect various tissues. They are frequently dysregulated in cancers and, via their protein targets, act as oncogenes or tumor-suppressors. As such, their effects are pervasive—miRNAs have been implicated in various biological processes including apoptosis, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and angiogenesis. In this context, miRNA involved in metastasis have been termed “metastamiRs”. This chapter focuses on the role of miRNAs in the metastatic processes of prostate cancer. Our primary aims are to detail specific biological processes and molecular targets through which miRNAs act and that may serve as therapeutic targets. Secondly, we discuss the potential of miRNAs to serve as biomarkers of tumor aggression and thus potentially guide personalized therapy.
Downloads
Metrics
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Copyright of individual chapters belongs to the respective authors. The authors grant unrestricted publishing and distribution rights to the publisher. The electronic versions of the chapters are published under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). Users are allowed to share and adapt the chapters for any non-commercial purposes as long as the authors and the publisher are explicitly identified and properly acknowledged as the original source. The books in their entirety are subject to copyright by the publisher. The reproduction, modification, republication and display of the books in their entirety, in any form, by anyone, for commercial purposes are strictly prohibited without the written consent of the publisher.