Correlation of over-expressions of miR-21 and Notch-1 in human colorectal cancer with clinical stages

Aim: The aim of the study was to identify expressions of Notch-1, microRNA-21 (miR-21), and phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in colorectal cancer (CRC), and to explore their relationship with clinical stages and metastatic status of CRC. Main methods: 102 CRC patients were enrolled and clinical data were analyzed. Expressions of Notch-1 and miR-21 in CRC and adjacent non-tumor tissues of these patients were measured by real time-PCR. Protein expressions of Notch-1 and PTEN of 12 paired tissues were determined by Western blot and immunohistochemistry. The correlations between gene expressions in different clinical stages as well as metastatic status were evaluated by linear regression. Key findings: Notch-1 was over-expressed in 86.27% (88/102) CRC tissues, particularly in advanced stages, while miR-21 expression was increased to 74.51% (76/102) in CRC tissues compared with matched adjacent non-tumor tissues. The expressions of Notch-1 and miR-21 were positively correlated with CRC development, especially in advanced-stages (r(2) = 0.3839, p < 0.01). Expressions of PTEN were significantly down-regulated in CRC tissues and negatively correlated with expressions of Notch-1 (r(2) = 0.5207, p < 0.01) and miR-21 (r(2) = 0.6996, p < 0.01). Significance: These data indicate that the crosstalk between Notch-1 and miR-21 is involved in CRC development through degradation of PTEN. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.