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World J Gastroenterol. Aug 21, 2023; 29(31): 4706-4735
Published online Aug 21, 2023. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v29.i31.4706
Dysregulated microRNAs as a biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of hepatitis B virus-associated hepatocellular carcinoma
Ming-He Zhang, Yu-Feng Yuan, Li-Juan Liu, Yu-Xin Wei, Wan-Yue Yin, Lan-Zhuo-Yin Zheng, Ying-Ying Tang, Zhao Lv, Fan Zhu
Ming-He Zhang, Yu-Feng Yuan, Department of Hepatobiliary & Pancreatic Surgery, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China
Ming-He Zhang, Li-Juan Liu, Yu-Xin Wei, Wan-Yue Yin, Lan-Zhuo-Yin Zheng, Ying-Ying Tang, Zhao Lv, Fan Zhu, State Key Laboratory of Virology, Department of Medical Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China
Yu-Xin Wei, Department of Neurosurgery, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei Province, China
Lan-Zhuo-Yin Zheng, Department of Cardiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China
Ying-Ying Tang, Department of Neurology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China
Fan Zhu, Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Allergy & Immunology, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China
Author contributions: Zhang MH gathered the pertinent literature, drafted the initial manuscript, and conceptualized the tables and figures; Yuan YF, Liu LJ, Wei YX, Yin WY, Zheng LZY, Tang YY, Lv Z, and Zhu F conceptualized the text's structure and revised it for significant intellectual content; all authors have viewed and approved the final manuscript version.
Supported by the Translational Medicine and Interdisciplinary Research Joint Fund of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, No. ZNLH201902.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Authors declare no conflict of interests for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Fan Zhu, PhD, Professor, State Key Laboratory of Virology, Department of Medical Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wuhan University, No. 185 Donghu Road, Wuhan 430071, Hubei Province, China. fanzhu@whu.edu.cn
Received: March 28, 2023
Peer-review started: March 28, 2023
First decision: June 17, 2023
Revised: June 29, 2023
Accepted: August 1, 2023
Article in press: August 1, 2023
Published online: August 21, 2023
Processing time: 142 Days and 22.3 Hours
Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignancy with a high incidence and fatality rate worldwide. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is one of the most important risk factors for its occurrence and development. Early detection of HBV-associated HCC (HBV-HCC) can improve clinical decision-making and patient outcomes. Biomarkers are extremely helpful, not only for early diagnosis, but also for the development of therapeutics. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a subset of non-coding RNAs approximately 22 nucleotides in length, have increasingly attracted scientists’ attention due to their potential utility as biomarkers for cancer detection and therapy. HBV profoundly impacts the expression of miRNAs potentially involved in the development of hepatocarcinogenesis. In this review, we summarize the current progress on the role of miRNAs in the diagnosis and treatment of HBV-HCC. From a molecular standpoint, we discuss the mechanism by which HBV regulates miRNAs and investigate the exact effect of miRNAs on the promotion of HCC. In the near future, miRNA-based diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic applications will make their way into the clinical routine.

Keywords: Hepatitis B virus; Hepatocellular carcinoma; MicroRNA; Diagnosis; Prognosis; Biomarker

Core Tip: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is one of the predominant risk factors for developing HCC. Early diagnosis and prognosis prediction are pivotal for patients with HBV-associated HCC (HBV-HCC) in their clinical management. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a subset of non-coding RNAs, play an essential role in human diseases including HBV-HCC. Here, we summarize the role of miRNAs in the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of patients with HBV-HCC. Furthermore, we discuss the underlying mechanism by which HBV dysregulates miRNAs, and the potential role of dysregulated miRNAs in promoting hepatocarcinogenesis, laying the foundation for applying potential therapeutic targets.