BioProject

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that negatively regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. More...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that negatively regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. They play a critical role in developmental and physiological processes and have been implicated in the pathogenesis of several diseases including cancer. To identify miRNA signatures associated with different stages of neoplastic development, we examined the expression profile of 776 primate miRNAs in the following cells: primary African green monkey kidney (pAGMK) cells; spontaneously immortalized, non-tumorigenic, low-passage VERO cells (10-87 LP); tumorigenic, high-passage VERO cells (10-87 HP); and a cell line (10-87 T) derived from a 10-87 HP cell tumor xenograft in athymic nude mice. When compared with pAGMK cells, the majority of miRNAs were expressed at lower levels in 10-87 LP, 10-87 HP, and 10-87 T cells. We identified 10 up-regulated miRNAs whose level of expression correlated with VERO cell evolution from a non-tumorigenic phenotype to a tumorigenic phenotype. Several miRNAs that were components of the tumorigenic phenotype-specific signatures in our AGMK model are also found in a variety of human tumors. This may prove to be of general relevance to the biology of neoplastic development as it occurs both in vivo as well as in vitro. In addition, one or more of these miRNAs could be potential biomarkers for the expression of the tumorigenic phenotype of VERO cells. Overall design: The spontaneousely transformed VERO cells, non-tumorigenic, were pasasged at low density in culture up to 250. The high passage (p250) was found to be tumorigenic. The cell line from xenograft of high passage was also established. We then evaluated patterns of miRNA expression in pAGMK cells and in derivatives of the 10-87 VERO cell line (10-87 LP cells, 10-87 HP cells, and 10-87 T cells) in an attempt to identify the miRNAs whose altered expression might correlate with, and perhaps be involved in, the evolution of the neoplastic phenotypes that occurred during passage of these AGMK cells in tissue culture. performed high-throughput miRNA profiling to audit the expression level of miRNAs in pAGMK cells and in VERO cells at non-tumorigenic and tumorigenic stages of neoplastic development. The analysis involved pAGMK cells, non-tumorigenic 10-87 low-passage VERO cells (10-87 LP) tumorigenic, high-passage VERO cells (10-87 HP) and a cell line (10-87 T) derived from a 10-87 HP cell tumor xenograft in athymic nude mice. Less...