BACKGROUND: MicroRNA-630 (miR-630) has been shown to be involved in various human malignancies. However, its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unknown.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: TaqMan qRT-PCR assay was performed to detect the expression of miR-630 in 42 pairs of HCC tissues and corresponding noncancerous hepatocellular tissues, and its correlations with clinicopathologic features and serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level of patients were analyzed.

RESULTS: The present study found that miR-630 expression was significantly increased in HCC tissues and cells compared with their normal counterparts. miR-630 expression level did not significantly chang at stage I but was markedly increased at advanced TNM stage (stage II~III). In addition, the increased expression of miR-630 in tissues of HCC appeared in patients who exhibited elevated serum levels of AFP (>25 ng/ml), but not in those with normal AFP levels (≤25 ng/ml). The miR-630 expression in carcinoma tissues revealed a positive correlation with the levels of serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP; R2=0.768).

CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that miR-630 is associated with tumor progression of hepatocellular carcinoma and may be a potential prognosis indicator.

Keywords: Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - genetics, alpha-Fetoproteins - metabolism