MicroRNA-21 is a novel promising target in cancer radiation therapy.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) represent an important nonprotein part of the human genome in tumor biology. Among the several types of miRNAs, microRNA-21 (miR-21) is dysregulated in several types of cancer and plays a key role in carcinogenesis, recurrence, and metastasis. Thus, it can be a potential target for cancer therapy including radiation therapy. In this review, we focus on miR-21, which has been identified in human cancer tissues, to suggest reasonable strategies for future research. miR-21 may have an influence on cell cycle, DNA damage repair, apoptosis, autophagy, and hypoxia of cancer during irradiation. We review the use of miR-21 in cancer radiation therapy and describe the known functions and possible underlying molecular mechanisms of miR-21 in radiosensitivity and radioresistance. Furthermore, the current and potential future applications of miR-21 in cancer radiation therapy are also discussed.
Department of Radiation Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, 300 Guangzhou Rd, Nanjing, 210029, China.
Jia
J
Liu
Hongcheng
H
Zhu
Xi
X
Yang
Yangyang
Y
Ge
Chi
C
Zhang
Qin
Q
Qin
Jing
J
Lu
Liangliang
L
Zhan
Hongyan
H
Cheng
Xinchen
X
Sun
D017209:Apoptosis; D001343:Autophagy; D002453:Cell Cycle; D015687:Cell Hypoxia; D004260:DNA Repair; D006801:Humans; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000502:physiology*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011836:Radiation Tolerance
C524940:MIRN21 microRNA, human; D035683:MicroRNAs