The roles and clinical significance of microRNAs in cervical cancer

Fenfen Wang, Baohua Li and Xing Xie

Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Women's Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, P.R. China

Offprint requests to: Xing Xie, Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Women´s Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, No. 1 Xueshi Road, Hangzhou 310006, Zhejiang Province, P.R. China. e-mail: xiex@zju.edu.cn

Summary. Cervical carcinogenesis induced by persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection represents a stepwise progression from precursors to invasive cervical cancer. Accumulated evidence has shown aberrant expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) in cervical cancer tissues and cells. Further studies reveal that miRNAs play key roles in the initiation and progression of cervical cancer, via specific signaling pathways, including E6-p53, E7-pRb, phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K)-Akt, Notch, Wnt/β-catenin, and Hedgehog pathways. Some studies demonstrate that miRNAs might serve as biomarkers or therapeutic targets, presenting a potential prospect in clinical practice. All results provide new insights into the function of miRNAs and the pathogenesis of cervical cancer induced by viral oncoproteins. New approaches for miRNA-based prevention and management for cervical cancer will be developed in the future. Histol Histopathol 31, 131-139 (2016)

Key words: Cervical cancer, Human papillomavirus, MicroRNA, Signaling pathway

DOI: 10.14670/HH-11-666