Multifaceted role of microRNAs in gastric cancer stem cells: Mechanisms and potential biomarkers

Figure 1 Transcription and synthesis of microRNAs. These figures were created with BioRender.com, https://www.biorender.com/. miRNAs: MicroRNAs; Pol: Polymerase; pri-miRNA: primary transcript.

Figure 2 Regulatory role of microRNAs in gastric cancer stem cells. A: Process by which MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate the cell cycle of gastric cancer stem cells (GCSCs), where miR-20 inhibits the cell cycle by inhibiting E2F1. miR-92a and miR-449a promote the cell cycle by upregulating the expression of Cyclin-dependent kinase 2. miR-449a can also inhibit the expression of p21, thereby promoting the cell cycle. B: Process by which miRNAs participate in the angiogenesis process associated with GCSCs. miR-21 promotes angiogenesis by inhibiting the expression of PTEN, while miR-26 promotes it by down-regulating MMP. miR-451b inhibits the formation of blood vessels by inhibiting the expression of AKT. C: Process through which miRNAs are involved in cell invasion and transfer, which mainly involves the Wnt/β-catenin and transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) pathways. miR-17-92a, miR-216-3p, and miR-451b up-regulation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. miR-151a-3p and miR-196a-3p positively regulate the TGF-β pathway, while miR-29c negatively regulates it. These figures were created with BioRender.com, https://www.biorender.com/.