Review Article
Fecal miRNAS as Biomarkers for the Detection of Colorectal Cancer
Yung-Bin Kuo1*, Err-Cheng Chan1, Jinn-Shiun Chen2, Fa-kuen Shieh3*
1Department of Medical Biotechnology and Laboratory Science, Chang Gung University, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan
2Department of Colorectal Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan
3Department of Chemistry, National Central University, Chung-Li, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan
- *Corresponding Author:
- Fa-kuen Shieh
Department of Chemistry
National Central University
Chung-Li (32001), Tao-Yuan, Taiwan
Tel: 886-3-4227151(65948)
Email: fshieh@ncu.edu.tw
Received date: April 13, 2013; Accepted date: June 06, 2013; Published date: June 08, 2013
Citation: Yung-Bin K, Err-Cheng C, Jinn-Shiun C, Fa-kuen S (2013) Fecal miRNAS as Biomarkers for the Detection of Colorectal Cancer. J Gastroint Dig Syst S12:016. doi:10.4172/2161-069X.S12-016
Copyright: © 2013 Yung-Bin K. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
As the third most common type of cancer, colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. A major priority in the management of CRC is screening. Therefore, the search for new noninvasive biomarkers to facilitate the early detection of CRC is particularly warranted. The detection of molecular markers from fecal samples is a potential strategy for CRC screening. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a group of highly conserved endogenous short non-coding RNA transcripts; they play critical roles in carcinogenesis, and aberrant expression of miRNAs has been observed in various types of cancer, including CRC. Their unique stability makes fecal miRNAs promising as biomarkers for the early diagnosis of CRC. In this review, we explored the literature and summarized the role miRNAs play in CRC, focusing specifically on the potential diagnostic utility of fecal miRNA as biomarkers.
