Genetic variants in noncoding PIWI-interacting RNA and colorectal cancer risk.
BACKGROUND
PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), which are a novel type of identified small noncoding RNA (ncRNA), play a crucial role in germline development and carcinogenesis.


METHODS
By systematically screening all known piRNAs, the authors identified 7 common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 9 piRNAs. Associations between these selected SNPs and the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) were detected in a case-control study. A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assay was used to evaluate messenger RNA (mRNA) expression levels of piR-015551 and of the long ncRNA (lncRNA) LNC00964-3 in 88 pairs of tissue samples.


RESULTS
The assay revealed that reference SNP rs11776042 in piR-015551 was significantly associated with a decreased risk of CRC in an additive model (P = .020). However, this protective effect was not significant after correction for multiple comparisons (test for the false discovery rate; P = .140). Furthermore, the authors observed that mRNA expression levels of LNC00964-3 (an lncRNA that included the piR-015551 sequence but not piR-015551) were significantly lower in CRC tissues than in corresponding normal tissues (P = 1.5 × 10(-5) for LNC00964-3; P = .899 for piR-015551). Correlation analysis revealed that piR-015551 expression was positively correlated with expression levels of LNC00964-3 (CRC tissues: r = 0.574, P = 5.13 × 10(-9) ; normal tissues: r = 0.601, P = 5.76 × 10(-10)). Moreover, rs11776042 was not significantly correlated with mRNA expression levels of piR-015551 or LNC00964-3 (all P > .05).


CONCLUSIONS
The current findings reveal the possibility that piR-015551 may be generated from LNC00964-3, which may be involved in the development of CRC.
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Haiyan
H
Chu
Department of Nursing, Yancheng Health Vocational and Technical College, Yancheng, China.|Department of Nursing, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China.
Liping
L
Xia
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Xiaonan
X
Qiu
Department of Oncology, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Dongying
D
Gu
Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Linjun
L
Zhu
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Jing
J
Jin
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Gaoyun
G
Hui
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Qiuhan
Q
Hua
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Mulong
M
Du
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Na
N
Tong
Department of Oncology, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Jinfei
J
Chen
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Zhengdong
Z
Zhang
Department of Environmental Genomics, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Cancer Center, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.|Department of Genetic Toxicology, Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Meilin
M
Wang
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D062085:RNA, Long Noncoding / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D062085:RNA, Long Noncoding
PIWI-interacting RNA; colorectal cancer; genetic variation; long noncoding RNA; molecular epidemiology; susceptibility