Involvement of miR-3648 mediated APC2 1 dysregulation in early onset and breast cancer progression

Multiple cancers arise due to aberrations in the Wnt signaling pathway. Several miRNAs modulate the integral components of the wingless integrated (Wnt) signaling pathway. miR-3648 is a human-specific miRNAs that is of particular interest due to its minimal off-targeting effect. In this study, we investigated the expression of miR-3648 and APC2 in breast cancer patients of Pakistan. Correlations of miR-3648 and APC2 expression with clinico-pathological features and breast cancer subtypes were observed in tissue samples by means of quantitative real time PCR. Our results showed that miR-3648 was relatively downregulated in Luminal A subtype, with corresponding upregulation of APC2 in these patients. Moreover, the transcript levels of both miR-3648 and APC2 were found to be inversely regulated in breast cancer women presented with early disease onset, pre-menopause, low tumor grade, early clinical stage, absence of nodal invasion and metastasis, further suggesting the molecular interplay of these molecules in breast cancer development and progression.