Identification of piRNA Targets in Urinary Extracellular Vesicles for the Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer

Abstract

Emerging studies demonstrate that PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are associated with various human cancers. This study aimed to evaluate the urinary extracellular vesicles (EVs) piRNAs as non-invasive biomarkers for prostate cancer (PCa) diagnosis. RNA was extracted from urinary EVs from five PCa patients and five healthy controls (HC), and the piRNAs were analyzed by small RNA sequencing. Dysregulated piRNAs were identified and then validated in another 30 PCa patients and 10 HC by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The expressions of novel_pir349843, novel_pir382289, novel_pir158533, and hsa_piR_002468 in urinary EVs were significantly increased in the PCa group compared with the HC group. The area under the curve (AUC) of novel_pir158533, novel_pir349843, novel_pir382289, hsa_piR_002468, and the combination of the four piRNA in PCa diagnosis was 0.723, 0.757, 0.777, 0.783, and 0.853, respectively. After the RNAhybrid program analysis, all four piRNAs had multiple potential binding sites with key mRNAs in PTEN/PI3K/Akt, Wnt/beta-catenin, or androgen receptor pathway, which are critical in PCa development and progression. In conclusion, our findings indicate that specific piRNAs in urinary EVs may serve as non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers for PCa.

Analysis of Faecal Microbiota and Small ncRNAs in Autism: Detection of miRNAs and piRNAs with Possible Implications in Host–Gut Microbiota Cross-Talk

“…PiRNAs data refer mainly to germline or are related to cancer cells [ 104 , 105 ] or faeces of patients with colorectal cancer [ 61 ]. They were detected in EVs in different body fluids [ 106 , 107 ], so we speculate that the piRNAs we found in stools may have been released into the gut lumen and may interact also with micro- and mycobiota.…”

Advances in the Application of Exosomes Identification Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for the Early Detection of Cancers

“…Exosomes are found in a variety of body fluids, carry characteristic markers and play a wide range of functions ( Han et al, 2021b ; Cheng et al, 2021 ; Peng et al, 2021 ). The study of exosomes has great potential for new diagnostic and medical translational applications, yet no significant breakthroughs have been achieved to date.…”

piRNAs and PIWI Proteins as Diagnostic and Prognostic Markers of Genitourinary Cancers

“…Specifically, increased expressions of piR_349843, piR_382289, piR_158533, and piR_002468 was detected in urinary EVs (extracellular vesicles) of PCa patients when compared with the control group. The analyses of AUC of these four piRs, as well as their combinations, indicated their specificity for PCa [ 197 ].…”