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Targeting Non-coding RNAs for the Development of Cancer Therapeutic Approaches

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 623

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Medical, Surgical and Health Science, University of Trieste, 34129 Trieste, Italy
Interests: molecular mechanisms of anti-tumor drugs; drug delivery; miRNA; siRNA; hepatocellular carcinoma
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Breast Unit ASUGI (Azienda Sanitaria Universitaria Giuliano Isontina), Trieste, Italy
Interests: molecular mechanisms of antitumor drugs; miRNA; siRNA; zebrafish model of human diseases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cancer remains a global health challenge, representing the second leading cause of death worldwide. Thus, novel therapeutic strategies are urgently required. In this regard, non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) constitute an attractive class of biological molecules with great therapeutic and monitoring potential. ncRNAs can be subdivided in short non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) when containing less than 200 nucleotides and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) when containing more than 200 nt. sncRNA includes micro RNAs (miRNA), small interfering RNA (siRNA), piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA), small nuclear RNA (snRNA), small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), extracellular RNA (exRNA), and small Cajal body-specific RNAs (scaRNAs); lncRNAs encompass linear lncRNA, circular lncRNA, long intergenic non-coding RNA, enhancer-derived RNA, transcribed ultra-conserved RNA, and natural antisense transcript. ncRNA regulates gene expression via an intricated and redundant network of interactions; this results, among others, in oncogenic or anti-oncogenic effects in the cells. Since the discovery of the first ncRNA in 2001, much evidence has emerged in the literature about their potential usefulness in both cancer therapy and monitoring. So far, however, the partial understanding of the great biological complexity governing ncRNAs has slowed down practical use in the clinic. Despite this, there is confidence that the deepening of the knowledge of ncRNA biology achieved via further extensive research can result in the identification of valuable therapeutic and monitoring molecules for many different types of human cancers.

This Special Issue of IJMS aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest research on ncRNAs from the more basic to more applicative investigations such as tumor therapeutic targets and tumor markers.

Prof. Dr. Gabriele Grassi
Dr. Federica Tonon
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • cancer
  • short/long non-coding RNAs
  • therapy
  • diagnosis
  • tumor markers
  • mechanism of action

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

29 pages, 2028 KiB  
Review
Non-Coding RNAs as Potential Diagnostic/Prognostic Markers for Hepatocellular Carcinoma
by Federica Tonon, Chiara Grassi, Domenico Tierno, Alice Biasin, Mario Grassi, Gabriele Grassi and Barbara Dapas
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(22), 12235; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252212235 - 14 Nov 2024
Viewed by 423
Abstract
The increasing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), together with the poor effectiveness of the available treatments, make early diagnosis and effective screening of utmost relevance. Liquid biopsy represents a potential novel approach to early HCC detection and monitoring. The identification of blood markers [...] Read more.
The increasing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), together with the poor effectiveness of the available treatments, make early diagnosis and effective screening of utmost relevance. Liquid biopsy represents a potential novel approach to early HCC detection and monitoring. The identification of blood markers has many desirable features, including the absence of any significant risk for the patients, the possibility of being used as a screening tool, and the ability to perform multiple tests, thus allowing for the real-time monitoring of HCC evolution. Unfortunately, the available blood markers for HCC have several limitations, mostly related to specificity and sensitivity. In this context, employing non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) may represent an interesting and novel diagnostic approach. ncRNAs, which include, among others, micro interfering RNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs), regulate human gene expression via interactions with their target mRNA. Notably, their expression can be altered in HCC, thus reflecting disease status. In this review, we discuss some notable works that describe the use of miRNAs, lncRNAs, and circRNAs as HCC biomarkers. Despite some open aspects related to ncRNA use, the presented works strongly support the potential effectiveness of these molecules as diagnostic/prognostic markers for HCC. Full article
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