Wang HC, Yin WX, Jiang M, Han JY, Kuai XW, Sun R, Sun YF, Ji JL. Function and biomedical implications of exosomal microRNAs delivered by parenchymal and nonparenchymal cells in hepatocellular carcinoma. World J Gastroenterol 2023; 29(39): 5435-5451 [PMID: 37900996 DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v29.i39.5435]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Ju-Ling Ji, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Pathology, Medical School of Nantong University, No. 19 Qixiu Road, Nantong 226001, Jiangsu Province, China. jijuling@ntu.edu.cn
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Hai-Chen Wang, Wen-Xuan Yin, Meng Jiang, Jia-Yi Han, Xing-Wang Kuai, Rui Sun, Yu-Feng Sun, Ju-Ling Ji, Department of Pathology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong 226001, Jiangsu Province, China
Meng Jiang, Jia-Yi Han, Xing-Wang Kuai, Rui Sun, Yu-Feng Sun, Ju-Ling Ji, Key Laboratory of Microenvironment and Translational Cancer Research, Science and Technology Bureau of Nantong City, Nantong 226001, Jiangsu Province, China
Ju-Ling Ji, Department of Pathology, The Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong 226001, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: Ji JL designed the review; Wang HC and Ji JL drafted the paper; Wang HC prepared the figure; Yin WX, Jiang M, Han JY, and Sun YF researched the background of the study; Ji JL, Kuai XW, and Sun R reviewed and revised the paper; all authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported bythe National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81761128018 and No. 81572871; the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, No. BK20151277; and the Undergraduate Training Programs for Innovation and Entrepreneurship of Jiangsu Province, No. 202110304035Z.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare having no conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Ju-Ling Ji, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Pathology, Medical School of Nantong University, No. 19 Qixiu Road, Nantong 226001, Jiangsu Province, China. jijuling@ntu.edu.cn
Received: May 26, 2023 Peer-review started: May 26, 2023 First decision: July 23, 2023 Revised: August 13, 2023 Accepted: October 16, 2023 Article in press: October 16, 2023 Published online: October 21, 2023
Abstract
Small extracellular vesicles (exosomes) are important components of the tumor microenvironment. They are small membrane-bound vesicles derived from almost all cell types and play an important role in intercellular communication. Exosomes transmit biological molecules obtained from parent cells, such as proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids, and are involved in cancer development. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), the most abundant contents in exosomes, are selectively packaged into exosomes to carry out their biological functions. Recent studies have revealed that exosome-delivered miRNAs play crucial roles in the tumorigenesis, progression, and drug resistance of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In addition, exosomes have great industrial prospects in the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of patients with HCC. This review summarized the composition and function of exosomal miRNAs of different cell origins in HCC and highlighted the association between exosomal miRNAs from stromal cells and immune cells in the tumor microenvironment and the progression of HCC. Finally, we described the potential applicability of exosomal miRNAs derived from mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of HCC.
Core Tip: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most serious cancers in adults, and microRNAs (miRNAs) in small extracellular vesicles (exosomes) play a vital role in the pathological processes of HCC. Recent studies on exosomal miRNAs in HCC mainly focus on miRNA profiling but place little emphasis on where miRNAs come from and what target cells they act on. This review focused on the origin of exosomal miRNAs according to their parent cells in the tumor microenvironment and their role in HCC pathogenesis, contributing to a better understanding of exosomal miRNAs in the tumor microenvironment.
