Roles and clinical implications of microRNAs in acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Simona Ultimo, Alberto M. Martelli, Giorgio Zauli, Marco Vitale, George A. Calin, Luca M. Neri

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small noncoding RNAs which regulate the expression of target genes by binding to messenger RNAs. miRNAs play a role in various biological processes, including proliferation, apoptosis and tumorigenesis. Dysregulation of miRNAs is implicated in invasion and metastasis in several human cancer types, and leukemia is not an exception. Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) is an hematological malignancy characterized by the proliferation of early lymphoid precursors that replace normal hematopoietic cells of the bone marrow. The expression profiling of miRNAs in ALL could be used for the classification of the disease establishing specific diagnoses and offering prognostic values in the near future. The correlation of miRNAs dysregulation and biology of ALL demonstrates that specific miRNA may be a potential therapy target. In this review we have focused our attention on the correlations between ALL and miRNAs, their link with signaling pathways and transcription factors in the disease and miRNA targeting therapeutic strategies with their advantages and potential use in clinical applications. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.