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Abstract Details
Three common functional polymorphisms in microRNA encoding genes in the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Xu Y, Li L, Xiang X, Wang H, Cai W, Xie J, Han Y, Bao S, Xie Q. Gene. 2013 Sep 25;527(2):584-93. doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2013.05.085. Epub 2013 Jun 17.
Source
Department of Infectious Diseases, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai, China.
Abstract
Emerging evidences have shown that common genetic polymorphisms in microRNAs may be associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); but individually published studies and previous meta-analyses revealed inconclusive results. The aims of this review and meta-analysis are to assess whether common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the genes encoding the microRNAs are associated with susceptibility to HCC development and clinicopathologic characteristics of hepatitis B virus (HBV) related HCC. A computerized search was performed in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and China BioMedicine (CBM) databases to identify relevant articles published before January 1st 2013. Ten case-control studies were assessed with a total of 3437 cases and 3437 healthy controls. Three common functional SNPs in miRNA-encoding genes were found, including miR-146a G>C (rs2910164), miR-196a-2 C>T (rs11614913) and miR-499 T>C (rs3746444). This meta-analysis revealed that the miR-146a*C variant was associated with a decrease in HCC risk, especially among Asian and male populations; while the miR-196a-2*T variant was associated with susceptibility to HCC among Caucasian populations. However, we failed to find any significant correlations between the miR-499*C polymorphism and HCC risks. When further stratification on HBV status was conducted, a similar trend of association between the three SNPs and the HBV-related HCC risks was observed, but these results were not statistically significant due to small sample sizes. The current meta-analysis demonstrates that SNPs contained in the genes encoding miR-146a and miR-196a-2 may play a major role in genetic susceptibility to HCC.