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Review
. 2022 Feb 24:12:790916.
doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.790916. eCollection 2022.

The Potential Roles of Exosomal Non-Coding RNAs in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Wei Wang  1 , Li-Ping Hao  2 , Haizhu Song  2 , Xiao-Yuan Chu  1   2 , Rui Wang  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The Potential Roles of Exosomal Non-Coding RNAs in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Wei Wang et al. Front Oncol. .

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the sixth highest-incidence cancer and the 4th most deadly cancer all over the world, with a high fatality and low diagnostic rate. Nowadays, Excessive alcohol consumption, type-2 diabetes, smoking and obesity have become some primary risk factors of HCC. As intercellular messenger transporting information cargoes between cells, exosomes are a type of extracellular vesicles (EVs) released by most types of cells including tumor cells and non-tumor cells and play a pivotal role in establishing an HCC microenvironment. Exosomes, and more generally EVs, contain different molecules, including messenger RNAs (mRNAs), non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), proteins, lipids and transcription factors. The three main ncRNAs in exosomes are microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), circular RNAs (circRNAs). NcRNAs, identified as essential components, are selectively sorted into exosomes and exosomal ncRNAs show great potential in regulating tumor development, including proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis, metastasis, immune escape and drug resistance. Here, we chiefly review the formation and uptake of exosomes, classification of exosomal ncRNAs and current research on the roles of exosomal ncRNAs in HCC progression. We also explored their clinical applications as new diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic avenues in HCC.

Keywords: diagnostic biomarkers; exosomal non-coding RNAs; exosome; extracellular vesicles; hepatocellular carcinoma; therapeutic target.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The biogenesis, secretion and uptake of exosomes. Exosomes contain bioactive cargoes including RNAs, DNAs, proteins and lipids. With the help of endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT), intraluminal vesicles (ILVs) are produced when early endosomes develop to multivesicular bodies (MVBs). Then, MVBs can be degraded by lysosomes or fuse with cell membrane and release exosomes into extracellular space. Exosomes can be ingested by recipient cells by endocytosis or fusing with plasma membrane, or through ligand–receptor interaction to exert various biological functions.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Exosomal miRNAs play a crucial role in HCC progression through different pathways and mechanisms.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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