AUTHOR=Huang Qiang , Shen Yu-Jie , Hsueh Chi-Yao , Zhang Yi-Fan , Yuan Xiao-Hui , Zhou Yu-Juan , Li Jiao-Yu , Lin Lan , Wu Chun-Ping , Hu Chun-Yan 

TITLE=Plasma Extracellular Vesicles-Derived miR-99a-5p: A Potential Biomarker to Predict Early Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

JOURNAL=Pathology and Oncology Research

VOLUME=28

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.por-journal.com/journals/pathology-and-oncology-research/articles/10.3389/pore.2022.1610699

DOI=10.3389/pore.2022.1610699

ISSN=1532-2807

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Purpose:</bold> This study aimed to investigate the applicability of plasma extracellular vesicles (EVs) miR-99a-5p as a potential head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) diagnostic biomarker.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> The miRNA expression of HNSCC tissue and plasma EVs were profiled by small RNA sequencing. qRT-PCR was performed to detect miR-99a-5p expression in HNSCC (<italic>n</italic> = 93) and benign disease (<italic>n</italic> = 39) plasma EVs and formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue (<italic>n</italic> = 110). We constructed receiver-operating characteristic curves to investigate the diagnostic efficiency of plasma EVs miR-99a-5p.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Tumor tissue exhibited lower miR-99a-5p than para-tumor tissue. Patients with high miR-99a-5p expression exhibited significantly more p16 positive status. In contrast, HNSCC plasma EVs harbored more miR-99a-5p than the benign disease group. Plasma EVs miR-99a-5p distinguished HNSCC with area under the curve (AUC) of 0.7494 (95% CI: 0.6692–0.8296; <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.0001), with 61.54% sensitivity and 75.27% specificity, respectively. Furthermore, plasma EVs miR-99a-5p also distinguished early HNSCC with AUC of 0.7394 (95% CI: 0.6284–0.8504; <italic>p</italic> = 0.0002), with 79.07% sensitivity and 61.54% specificity, respectively.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> Plasma EVs miR-99a-5p is a potential biomarker for predicting early HNSCC.</p>