A novel cancer-germline transcript carrying pro-metastatic miR-105 and TET-targeting miR-767 induced by DNA hypomethylation in tumors.

ABSTRACT: Genome hypomethylation is a common epigenetic alteration in human tumors, where it often leads to aberrant activation of a group of germline-specific genes, commonly referred to as "cancer-germline" genes. The cellular functions and tumor promoting potential of these genes remain, however, largely uncertain. Here, we report identification of a novel cancer-germline transcript (CT-GABRA3) displaying DNA hypomethylation-dependent activation in various tumors, including melanoma and lung carcinoma. Importantly, CT-GABRA3 harbors a microRNA (miR-105), which has recently been identified as a promoter of cancer metastasis by its ability to weaken vascular endothelial barriers following exosomal secretion. CT-GABRA3 also carries a microRNA (miR-767) with predicted target sites in TET1 and TET3, t

SUBMITTER: Loriot A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4164501 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature