Insights into the Regulation of Tumor Angiogenesis by Micro-RNAs

Abstract

One of the hallmarks of cancer is angiogenesis, a series of events leading to the formation of the abnormal vascular network required for tumor growth, development, progression, and metastasis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short, single-stranded, non-coding RNAs whose functions include modulation of the expression of pro- and anti-angiogenic factors and regulation of the function of vascular endothelial cells. Vascular-associated microRNAs can be either pro- or anti-angiogenic. In cancer, miRNA expression levels are deregulated and typically vary during tumor progression. Experimental data indicate that the tumor phenotype can be modified by targeting miRNA expression. Based on these observations, miRNAs may be promising targets for the development of novel anti-angiogenic therapies. This review discusses the role of various miRNAs and their targets in tumor angiogenesis, describes the strategies and challenges of miRNA-based anti-angiogenic therapies and explores the potential use of miRNAs as biomarkers for anti-angiogenic therapy response.

Keywords: anti-angiogenic therapies; endothelial cells; microRNAs; tumor angiogenesis.

Figure 1

Biogenesis of miRNAs. miRNAs: microRNAs; mRNA: messenger RiboNucleic Acid; pri-miRNAs: primary miRNA transcripts; Drosha: Drosha ribonuclease III; Dicer: Dicer 1 ribonuclease III; DGCR8: DiGeorge syndrome critical region 8; pre-miRNA: precursor miRNA; RISC: RNA-induced silencing complex.