Clinical Value Evaluation of microRNA-324-3p and Other Available Biomarkers in Patients With HBV Infection–Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract

Background Patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection are at high risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aimed to evaluate the expression of microRNA-324-3p (miR-324-3p) in HBV-related HCC, and explore the clinical significance of serum miR-324-3p and other available biomarkers in the diagnosis and prognosis of HBV-related HCC. Methods Expression of miR-324-3p in HBV-infection-related cells and patients was estimated using quantitative real-time PCR. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of serum miR-324-3p, AFP and PIVKA-II in the differentiation of HBV-related HCC from healthy controls and chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The relationship between serum miR-324-3p and patients’ clinical features was assessed using Chi-square test, and the value of miR-324-3p to predict overall survival prognosis was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier methods and Cox regression assay in patients with HBV-related HCC. Results HBV-related HCC cells had significantly increased miR-324-3p compared with normal and HBV-unrelated HCC cells, and serum miR-324-3p in HCC patients with HBV infection was also higher than that in healthy controls and CHB. Serum miR-324-3p had relatively high diagnostic accuracy for the screening of HCC case with HBV infection, and the combination of miR-324-3p, AFP and PIVKA-II showed the improved diagnostic performance. Additionally, high serum miR-324-2p in HBV-related HCC patients was associated with cirrhosis, tumor size, clinical stage and poor overall survival prognosis. Conclusion Serum increased miR-324-3p may be involved in the progression of HBV-related hepatitis to HCC, and may serve as a candidate biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of HBV-related HCC.

Diagnostic performance of PIVKA-II in identifying recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma following curative resection: a retrospective cohort study

“…Another study from Korea confirmed similar results in HCC with chronic hepatitis B 18 . Same finds was also verified by Li et al 19 In HCC patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, PIVKA-II also showed superior performance than AFP 13 , 20 . In addition, although most of studies insist PIVKA-II was more sensitive than AFP for the diagnose of overall or early HCC 12 , 14 , 21 , 22 , adverse consequences also had been demonstrated that AFP was more efficient than PIVKA.…”

Circulating microRNAs as promising diagnostic biomarkers for hepatocellular carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…The table includes data from 24 papers, which collectively involved 1,668 individuals diagnosed with HCC and 1,236 healthy individuals. These papers were published between 2018 and 2023, with thirteen originating from China ( Xu L. et al, 2018 ; Lv et al, 2018 ; Chen and Wang, 2019 ; Han et al, 2019 ; Ning et al, 2019 ; Zhang et al, 2019 ; Cao and Wang, 2020 ; Wu et al, 2020 ; Zeng et al, 2020 ; Chen et al, 2021 ; Zhao et al, 2021 ; Fang et al, 2022 ; Wu et al, 2022 ), eight from Egypt ( Shaheen et al, 2018 ; El Mahdy et al, 2019 ; Elmougy et al, 2019 ; Aly et al, 2020 ; Elhendawy et al, 2020 ; Wahb et al, 2021 ; Elfert et al, 2022 ; Youssef et al, 2022 ), one from India ( Yousuf et al, 2022 ), one from Germany ( Loosen et al, 2021 ), and one from Italy ( Moshiri et al, 2018 ). In terms of sample types, eighteen studies utilized serum samples, while six studies used plasma samples for miRNA extraction.…”

Serum lactate dehydrogenase is associated with impaired lung function: NHANES 2011–2012

“…Serologic indicators are more universal than PFTs, have fewer contraindications, and can accurately and efficiently reflect relevant information about the sample. Previous studies have confirmed that more and more serologic markers are being used to diagnose and monitor diseases such as cancer, COVID-19, and cardiac diseases [34][35][36][37][38]. In addition, a large number of studies describe indirect associations between serologic indicators and pulmonary function [7,15,39], but the status of these indicators in the diagnosis and treatment of respiratory diseases needs to be further improved.…”