Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) represents the fourth common cause of cancer related death worldwide. HCC prognosis is still miserable due to its late diagnosis and limited treatment strategies, especially in cases with underlying chronic liver diseases as liver cirrhosis (LC).
To check the utility of Hsp27and miR-17-5p expression as early non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers for HCC on top of liver cirrhosis and their association with clinico-pathological parameters.
This case control study included 95 HCC cases and 103 LC patients without HCC. Liver cirrhosis was diagnosed by abdominal ultrasound during clinical examination, liver function tests and liver biopsy. HCC was diagnosed by ultrasound and/or CT or MRI, Alpha Fetoprotein (AFP) and histopathology. Total RNA was extracted from cancerous tissue and surrounding tissues in HCC patients and from blood and serum of both groups. Expression of blood Hsp27 and serum MiR-17-5p were studied by quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR).
Hsp27 and miR-17-5p mRNA expression were significantly augmented in HCC patients in comparison to LC patients and in malignant tissues as compared to non-malignant adjacent tissues in HCC patients. In blood of HCC patients, Hsp27 mRNA expression was significantly elevated and correlated with big tumour size, number of tumour lesions, high histopathological grades, metastasis and HBV or HCV infection. Serum miR-17-5p mRNA level was significantly enhanced and associated with number of tumour lesions, vascular invasion, stage and metastasis.
Hsp27 and miR17-5p expression levels are augmented in HCC patients and associated with some clinicopathological criteria. Therefore, they can be used as novel non-invasive biomarkers for HCC diagnosis and prognosis in Egyptian patients.
•Blood and tissue miR-17-5p and Hsp27 expression are positively correlated in HCC•miR-17-5p and Hsp27 are suitable non-invasive candidates for cancer diagnosis.•There are positive association between Hsp27 and number of focal lesions, metastatic status, tumour size and tumour grade•There was positive association between miR-17-5p and number of focal lesions, metastatic status, TNM stages and vascular invasion