Assessment of miRNA-10b Expression Levels as a Potential Precursor to Metastasis in Localized and Locally Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer among Iraqi Patients

Abstract

Breast cancer (BC) stands as the most prevalent form of carcinoma among women, ranking as the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the female population. The objective of this study is to assess the expression of miR-10b and determine its diagnostic and prognostic significance in breast cancer patients across various disease stages. The investigation was carried out in Baghdad at the Oncology Teaching Hospital within Baghdad Medical City and the Oncology Unit at Al-Yarmouk Teaching Hospital. A total of 150 samples were included and divided into two groups: the blood group consisting of 90 samples (including control subjects, localized BC patients, and those with metastatic and locally advanced BC) and the tissue group comprising 60 samples (representing both benign and malignant BC cases). The study spanned from March 2022 to January 2023, with patients’ ages ranging from 24 to 75 years. The primary focus of this investigation was to identify the gene expression of miRNA-10b in all sample types. This was achieved by measuring gene expression levels and normalizing them to the level of a housekeeping gene (U6), and quantification was carried out considering the $\Delta \text{Ct}$ value and the fold change method ($2^{-\Delta \Delta \text{Ct}}$). The results revealed an upregulated fold expression of miRNA-10b, particularly in locally advanced and metastatic BC, where the expression was significantly higher compared to the other groups, with a fold expression of $1.770\pm 0.1070$. In localized breast cancer, the fold expression was $1.624\pm 0.064$, and in malignant tissue, it measured $1.546\pm 0.06754$, all relative to apparently healthy control subjects. In summary, our research provides compelling evidence supporting the classification of miRNA-10b as an oncogenic factor in BC. The central involvement of miRNA-10b in the tumorigenic processes of BC highlights its reference for developing novel targeted therapeutic interventions and detection biomarkers for BC treatment. Notably, elevated expression of miRNA-10b was observed in BC tissues, correlating with an unfavorable distant metastasis-free survival outcome.