Affiliation:
1. Department of Biomedical Science, Advanced Medical and Dental Institute Universiti Sains Malaysia Kepala Batas Pulau Pinang Malaysia
2. Department of Metabolism, Digestion, and Reproduction Imperial College London London UK
3. School of General and Foundation Studies, Asian Institute of Medicine Science and Technology (AIMST University) Bedong Kedah Malaysia
4. Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Health Sciences Ebonyi State University Abakaliki Nigeria
Abstract
AbstractMicroRNAs (miRNA) are small and conserved noncoding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level. These groups of RNAs are crucial in various cellular processes, especially in mediating disease pathogenesis, particularly cancer. The dysregulation of miRNAs was reported in many cancer types, including nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), which is a malignant tumor of the nasopharynx. In this review, miRNAs involvement in crucial signaling pathways associated with NPC such as PTEN/PI3K/AKT, TGFβ/SMAD, RAS/MAPK, Wnt/β‐catenin and pRB‐E2F was investigated. miRNAs could function as tumor suppressor‐miR or onco‐miR in NPC profoundly influenced cell cycle, apoptosis, proliferation, migration, and metastasis. This comprehensive review of current literature provided a thorough profile of miRNAs and their interplay with the aforementioned signaling pathways in NPC. Understanding these molecular interactions could remarkably impact the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic strategies for NPC.