title: The tumor-suppressive and potential therapeutic functions of miR-34a in epithelial carcinomas.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Many RNA species have been identified as important players in the development of chronic diseases including cancer. Certain classes of regulatory RNAs such as microRNAs (miRNAs) have been investigated in such detail that bona fide tumor suppressive and oncogenic miRNAs have been identified. Because of this, there has been a major effort to therapeutically target these small RNAs. One in particular, a liposomal formulation of miR-34a (MRX34), has entered Phase I trials.
  
  
  METHODS
  This review aims to summarize miRNA biology, its regulation within normal versus disease states and how it can be targeted therapeutically, with a particular emphasis on miR-34a. Understanding the complexity of a single miRNA will aid in the development of future RNA-based therapeutics for a broader range of chronic diseases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The potential of miRNAs to be developed into anti-cancer therapeutics has become an increasingly important area of research. miR-34a is a tumor suppressive miRNA across many tumor types through its ability to inhibit cellular proliferation, invasion and tumor sphere formation. miR-34a also shows promise within certain in vivo solid tumor models. Finally, as miR-34a moves into clinical trials it will be important to determine if it can further sensitize tumors to certain chemotherapeutic agents.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology , Yale University , New Haven , CT , USA.|b Department of Pathology , BIDMC Cancer Center/Harvard Medical School , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Brian D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.affiliation: a Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology , Yale University , New Haven , CT , USA.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Parsons
authors.affiliation: b Department of Pathology , BIDMC Cancer Center/Harvard Medical School , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Frank J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Slack
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000235:genetics; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; D006801:Humans; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009375:Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; C522425:MIRN34 microRNA, human; D035683:MicroRNAs
keywords: Biomarker; breast cancer; cancer; lung; miR-34; microRNA; therapy; treatment resistance; tumor suppressor