Open AccessCirculating cell‐free high mobility group AT‐hook 2 mRNA as a detection marker in the serum of colorectal cancer patients
Author(s) -
Sahengbieke Sana,
Wang Jian,
Li Xiangwei,
Wang Yuhong,
Lai Maode,
Wu Jingjing
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of clinical laboratory analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.536
H-Index - 50
eISSN - 1098-2825
pISSN - 0887-8013
DOI - 10.1002/jcla.22332
Subject(s) - colorectal cancer , hmga2 , messenger rna , cancer , medicine , real time polymerase chain reaction , biology , cell , oncology , cancer research , gene , microrna , biochemistry , genetics
Background Detection of circulating cell‐free mRNA serves as noninvasive tools for cancer diagnosis. As an oncofetal protein, HMGA2 (high mobility group AT‐hook 2) is upregulated in colorectal cancer (CRC) tissues. However, it is not clear whether the increased levels of circulating cell‐free HMGA2 mRNA functions as potential biomarkers for improved diagnosis of CRC. Methods To assess its clinical significance in diagnosis and prediction, we evaluated serum levels of circulating HMGA2 mRNA in CRC patients and in healthy controls. In this study, 83 CRC patients and 11 normal controls were enrolled in this study. We used real‐time quantitative reverse transcription‐PCR to evaluate the plasma mRNA levels of HMGA2 and analyze the correlation between their expression and clinicopathologic characteristics. Results We found that the levels of HMGA2 mRNA were significantly higher in CRC patients compared with healthy volunteers. The patients with right‐sided CRC, colon cancer, positive nerve infiltration, positive vascular invasion, negative microsatellite instability (MSI), and increasing in serum carbohydrate antigen (CA) 199 had higher levels of plasma HMGA2 mRNA. A strong positive correlation between circulating cell‐free HMGA2 mRNA and CA199 level in serum was found in our study. Furthermore, statistical analysis revealed that levels of HMGA2 mRNA in plasma and in tumors were strictly correlated. Conclusions Collectively, our data suggested that cell‐free HMGA2 mRNA in plasma might function as a novel diagnostic marker for CRC.