Multiple Roles of MicroRNA-100 in Human Cancer and its Therapeutic Potential

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a recently discovered class of endogenous, small (about 22 nucleotides) non-coding RNAs, which play important roles in cancer development and progression. Emerging evidence shows that microRNAs exert their regulatory effects by directly binding to the 3'- untranslated regions (UTRs) of their target genes. MicroRNA-100 (miR-100) is aberrantly expressed and functions in many human cancers by regulating multiple cell processes, such as cell cycle, proliferation, differentiation, migration, invasion and apoptosis, via post-transcriptionally regulating various target genes. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in miR-100-mediated tumor progression will provide an opportunity for exploring novel miR-100-based targeted therapies for human cancers. This review aims to summarize the recently published literature on the roles of miR-100 in regulating tumorigenesis, and explore its potential clinical applications for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and clinical treatment. (C) 2015 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel