Sara Bagheri Farahani, Hossein Noghrei, Faranak Jamshidian
These findings suggest that miR-4303 and miR-4291, together with MAPK1, may serve as promising diagnostic biomarkers in OSCC. However, further validation in larger, independent cohorts and functional studies is required to confirm their clinical applicability.
OBJECTIVE: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is characterized by high recurrence rates and an unclear underlying molecular basis, highlighting the need for improved early diagnostic strategies to enhance treatment outcomes and reduce healthcare burden. Given the regulatory role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in oral cancer progression through post-transcriptional control of target genes, this study aimed to investigate the diagnostic potential of miR-4303 and miR-4291 in OSCC.
METHODS: Using TargetScan, MAPK1 was predicted as a common target of both miR-4303 and miR-4291. Expression levels of miR-4303, miR-4291, and MAPK1 were quantified by qRT-PCR in 30 paired OSCC and adjacent normal tissue samples. Diagnostic performance was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.
RESULTS: MAPK1 and both miRNAs (miR-4303 and miR-4291) were significantly upregulated in OSCC tissues compared to adjacent normal tissues (P < 0.0001). MAPK1 expression showed a significant association with higher tumor grade (P = 0.003) and advanced clinical stage (P = 0.005). ROC curve analysis demonstrated strong diagnostic performance, with AUC values of 0.92 for MAPK1, 0.731 for miR-4303 (P = 0.0001), and 0.707 for miR-4291 (P < 0.0001), indicating their potential utility in distinguishing OSCC from normal tissue.
CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that miR-4303 and miR-4291, together with MAPK1, may serve as promising diagnostic biomarkers in OSCC. However, further validation in larger, independent cohorts and functional studies is required to confirm their clinical applicability.