Role of microRNA deregulation in the pathogenesis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL)

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small endogenous RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level through its sequence complementation with target mRNAs. An individual miRNA species can simultaneously influence the expression of multiple genes and conversely, several miRNAs can synchronously control expression of specific gene product mRNA levels. Thus, miRNAs expression in cells has to be precisely regulated and alterations in miRNA levels may cause an aberrant expression of genes involved in oncogenic pathways and consequently result in cancer development. Indeed, miRNA expression is often deregulated in many cancers, including B-cell lymphomas. Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a heterogeneous group of B-cell lymphomas with different genetic backgrounds, morphologic features, and responses to therapy. Over the past decade, miRNAs emerged as a new tool for understanding DLBCL biology, and promising candidate molecular markers in DLBCL classification and treatment. In this review, we will focus on miRNAs aberrantly expressed in DLBCL and discuss the putative mechanisms of this deregulation. Additionally, we will summarize miRNAs' involvement in the identification of DLBCL subgroups, and their potential role as diagnostic/prognostic biomarkers as well as specific therapeutic targets for DLBCL. (C) 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.