Clinical values and potential pathways of miR-183-5p in gastric cancer: a study based on integrational bioinformatics analysis

Background: The clinicopathological value and exploration of the potential molecular mechanism of microRNA-183-5p (miR-183-5p) have been investigated in various cancers. This study further explored the transcriptome profile regulated by miR-183-5p. Methods: Messenger RNA (mRNA) expression data, miRNA expression, and clinical information of stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD) were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) that related to mir-189-5p expression and cancer proliferation were acquired using bioinformatics analysis. The biological functions of these genes were analyzed in terms of Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). Hub genes relating to gastric cancer (GC) signal pathway were explored. The results were validated by further experiments. Results: A total of 308 genes were found to be regulated by miR-183-5p, and they were related to cancer and GC patients' survival outcome. The biological function of these genes was found to act mainly on biological processes and the involved signal pathways included neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, cell adhesion molecules, and axon guidance. In addition, miR-183-5p was also shown to regulate the mTOR, Wnt, MAPK, and PI3K-Akt signaling pathways through the genes WNT2B, NGFR, and NTRK2. Conclusions: The miRNA miR-183-5p participates in the tumorigenesis and development of GC via certain signaling pathways, in particular the nerve- and immunity-related genes.