Objective: To investigate the differential expression of microRNAs between human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver cirrhosis (LC).
Methods: The total RNA was extracted from 25 pairs of HCC and LC tissues. microRNA microarray was used to analyze the microRNA expression profiles, and validation of the microarray results was carried out by real-time quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR).
Results: Three microRNAs exhibited higher expression in the HCC samples than in the LC samples. In comparison with the LC samples, the HCC samples showed down-regulated expressions of 9 microRNAs. qRT-PCR verified that has-miR-122a, has-miR-199a, and has-miR-199b were downregulated in HCC, which was in agreement with the microarray results.
Conclusion: HCC and LC samples have significantly different microRNA expression profiles. These differentially expressed microRNAs may be involved in the pathogensis of HCC.