Study of gene expression of hsamiR-515-5p، hsamiR-623 , hsamiR-1272-3p and Notch1 protein in Hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract

Hepato cellular carcinoma (HCC) is a type of primary liver cancer and is more common in individuals with chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. It has been revealed that changes in the miRNA expression could be involved in the HCC pathogenesis. Methods: This study was performed on 40 hepato cellular carcinoma and 40 healthy liver samples. Total RNA was extracted from paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue blocks and the gene expression of miR-515, miR-623 and miR-1272 was measured by Real-Time Quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR. Also, the amount of Notch1 protein was measured in the tissue samples by immunohistochemistry. Results: Our results showed that Notch1 protein levels were significantly higher in the cancer cells than the healthy cells (p<0.05). Also, the data analysis showed that the gene expression of miR-515, miR-623, and miR-1272 in cancerous tissues was respectively 3.8, 4.7, and 2.9 folds the normal tissues (p<0.05). In addition, it was cleared that expression of these genes was not affected by hepatitis B and liver cirrhosis, and measuring the expression of these genes could be a marker with high specificity and sensitivity for HCC detection.