There are some recent studies on delineating miRNAs and genes differentially expressed in different stages of colon cancer. However, the genetic mechanism underlying these genetic changes that drive pathological stage progression are remain poorly studied. Studies have also found that the genetic changes varied among different stages of colon cancer, specially between stage II and stage III. Exploiting the downstream neighborhoods of genes with such a critical role in the pathogenesis of colon cancer provide long-term benefits in personalized medicine and adjuvant therapies. For example, m i R−148, m i R−26 a−2 and m i R−130 a were identified to be significantly associated with a poor clinical prognosis. Previous studies have reported several miRNAs were relevant with poor survival and therapeutic outcome in colon cancer. More recently, microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles have been utilized as predictive markers for survival of colon cancer. In contrast, the knockdown of A R I D4 B, causes metastasis of cancer cells to other regions of the body. Over-expression of this gene is thought to enhance the cell migration process as well as cell invasion. It has also been reported that A R I D4 B is a key player in pathogenesis and is classified as a metastasis modifier gene. For instance, genes PRKCQ and PRKCZ are members of the protein kinase family and PRKCZ is often involved in cell survival and cell migration in different cancers such as ovarian cancer. These genes are also known to be present in the beginning of metastasis.Ĭell invasion and migration are also critical components in colon cancer progression. Genes Z E B1 and Z E B2 are known repressors that regulate targets in the EMT pathway by changing the phenotype of normal cells to cancerous cells. For example, the progression of colon cancer is directly linked to the functional epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) gene expression signatures. Gene expression signatures have shown much promise as prognostic markers. Due to the benefits of personalized medicine, these patients have an increased overall survival with therapies such as adjuvant chemotherapy. The role of pathologic prognostic markers is important in the advancement of personalized medicine and can help reduce the risk of recurrence, especially in high-risk patients with stage II colon cancer. The drastic decrease in survival rate in colon cancer speaks to the need for better early diagnostic and prognostic procedures. When the cancer has reached stage IV and metastasized to other parts of the body, the 5-year relative survival rate is significantly decreased to approximately 12%. In patients with stage IIIA, the 5-year relative survival rate is 89%, for stage IIIB it is 69% and 53% for stage IIIC. Similarly, for stage III colon cancer there are three subtypes: stage IIIA, IIIB and IIIC colon cancers. There is an 87% 5-year relative survival rate for stage IIA and 63% for stage IIB. For patients with stage II colon cancer, there are two stage subtypes: stage IIA and stage IIB colon cancers. According to previous studies, there is a 92% 5-year relative survival rate in stage I colon cancer. The complex progress of colon cancer stage induces the poor prediction prognosis of colon cancer. These findings point to a hypothesis that these networks signify different roles of microRNA and gene regulation in the pathogenesis and tumorigenesis of colon cancer.Ĭolon cancer, which is reported to be one of the few curable cancers, is one of the most common cancers around the world. Our results show that there are significant differences in network connections between miRNAs and genes in different pathological stages of colon cancer. To demonstrate the application of our method, we apply this approach to identify microRNA and gene interactions that are specific to pathological stages of colon cancer in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets.

Particularly, we use this approach to identify microRNA and gene expression networks that are specific to certain pathological stages. In this study, we develop a new strategy for integrating microRNA and gene expression profiles together with clinical information toward understanding the regulation of colon cancer.

Hence, it is critical to understand the molecular mechanisms of disease progression and prognosis. Although the number of annual cases has decreased drastically, prognostic screening and translational methods can be improved. Colon cancer is one of the common cancers in human.

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