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Dixit et al. J Cancer Metastasis Treat 2022;8:47 Journal of Cancer
DOI: 10.20517/2394-4722.2022.70
Metastasis and Treatment

Review Open Access

Promising therapeutic potential of tumor suppressor
microRNAs for malignant pleural mesothelioma

Shivani Dixit, Agnes Y. Choi, Anand Singh, Karthik Pittala, Nathan Pruett, Chuong D. Hoang

Thoracic Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
Correspondence to: Chuong D. Hoang, MD, Thoracic Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health,
CCR and the Clinical Center, 10 Center Drive, Mail Code 1201, Room 4-3940, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. E-mail:
chuong.hoang@nih.gov
How to cite this article: Dixit S, Choi AY, Singh A, Pittala K, Pruett N, Hoang CD. Promising therapeutic potential of tumor
suppressor microRNAs for malignant pleural mesothelioma. J Cancer Metastasis Treat 2022;8:47.
https://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2394-4722.2022.70
Received: 20 Jun 2022 First Decision: 5 Aug 2022 Revised: 21 Sep 2022 Accepted: 25 Nov 2022 Published: 5 Dec 2022

Academic Editor: Robert Arthur Kratzke Copy Editor: Fangling Lan Production Editor: Fangling Lan

Abstract
Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive and recalcitrant surface neoplasm that defies current
multimodality treatments. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that epigenetically regulate multiple
gene networks and cellular processes. In cancer, miRNA dysregulation is associated with tumorigenesis, with
tumor suppressor miRNAs underexpressed or lost, while oncogenic miRNAs are overexpressed. Consequently,
miRNAs have emerged as potential therapeutic candidates. Because loss of tumor suppressors predominates the
pathophysiology of MPM, re-expressing tumor suppressor miRNAs could be an effective therapeutic strategy. This
review highlights the most promising MPM-specific tumor suppressor miRNAs that could be developed into novel
therapeutics, the supporting data, and what is known about their molecular mechanism(s).
Keywords: Malignant pleural mesothelioma, microRNA, tumor suppressor, therapeutic

INTRODUCTION
MicroRNAs (miRNA) are short noncoding RNAs that post-transcriptionally regulate multiple gene
[1]
networks and have emerged as potential therapeutic candidates for cancer treatment . In principle,
miRNAs are less prone to tumor-adaptive resistance or mutations and can exert profound intracellular

© The Author(s) 2022. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
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