Role of serum microRNAs as biomarkers for endometriosis, endometrioid carcinoma of ovary & endometrioid endometrial cancer

Priti Kumari, Indu Sharma, Subhas Chandra Saha, Radhika Srinivasan, Puneet Bhardwaj
The Indian journal of medical research · 2022 · vol. 156(3) , pp. 516–523 · doi:10.4103/ijmr.ijmr_288_20 · PMID:36751747 · PMC10101355 · W4319460612
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This study investigated serum microRNA expression levels and found specific miRNAs could potentially serve as diagnostic biomarkers for endometriosis, endometrioid ovarian carcinoma, and endometrioid endometrial cancer.

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⚙ AI-generated deep summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-10 ⓘ

This exploratory study evaluated whether serum microRNA expression can distinguish women with endometriosis, endometrioid carcinoma of the ovary (ECO), and endometrioid endometrial cancer (EC) using qRT-PCR of six miRNAs (miR-16, miR-20a, miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-143, miR-145) in 40 histopathology-confirmed patients (n=10 per group plus 10 controls). miR-16 was downregulated in all three disease groups versus controls, while miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-143, and miR-145 showed group-specific up- or down-regulation; ROC analysis indicated diagnostic potential for endometriosis (notably miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-143, miR-145), ECO (miR-145), and endometrioid EC (miR-16, miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-145). The main caveat is the small sample size (n=10 per group) and that the study used serum miRNAs measured at a single timepoint around surgery/diagnosis without broader validation. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — serum microRNAs are assessed as diagnostic biomarkers differentiating endometriosis from endometrioid ovarian and endometrial cancers.

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Abstract

Background & objectives: Accurate and early diagnosis is imperial in the management of endometriosis, endometrioid carcinoma of ovary (ECO) and endometrioid endometrial cancer (EC), yet there are no definitive diagnostic methods available for these diseases. Therefore, the present study was aimed to evaluate the diagnostic potential of differentially expressed miRNAs in serum samples of women with endometriosis, ECO and EC to establish them as diagnostic biomarkers. Methods: Blood samples (5 ml) were obtained from 40 patients (n=10/study group) undergoing laparoscopy/laparotomy/hysterectomy. miRNA-rich RNA was extracted from the serum samples, and quantitative real-time (qRT)-PCR was performed to check the expression levels of miR-16, miR-99b, miR-20a, miR-145, miR-143 and miR-125a in all the samples. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was done to check the diagnostic potential. Results: In endometriosis, miR-16 was downregulated (P<0.05) whereas miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-143 and miR-145 were upregulated (P<0.05). In ECO group, downregulated expression of miR-16 and miR-125a (P<0.05) was observed, whereas miR-99b, miR-143 and miR-145 were upregulated (P<0.05). In endometrioid EC, miR-16, miR-99b, miR-125 and miR-145 were downregulated (P<0.05), whereas miR-143 was upregulated (P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that, for endometriosis, miR-99b, miR-125a, miR-143 and miR-145 served as diagnostic markers. miR-145 showed diagnostic power for ECO, and for endometrioid EC, miR-16, miR-99b, miR-125a and miR-145 showed diagnostic potential. Interpretation & conclusions: The present findings suggested that certain circulating miRNAs (miB99b, miR-16, miR-125a, miR-145) might act as indicators and discriminators of endometriosis and endometrioid subtypes of EC and ovarian cancer and might serve as potential biomarkers for early diagnosis and management of these debilitating diseases.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid Carcinoma, Endometrioid

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