Genome-wide identification and characterization of circular RNA in resected hepatocellular carcinoma and background liver tissue

Circular RNA (circRNA) is a type of non-coding RNA known to affect cancer-related micro RNAs and various transcription factors. circRNA has promise as a cancer-related biomarker because its circular structure affords high stability. We found using high-throughput sequencing that seven candidate circRNAs (hsa_circ_0041150, hsa_circ_0025624, hsa_circ_0001020, hsa_circ_0028129, hsa_circ_0008558, hsa_circ_0036683, hsa_circ_0058087) were downregulated in HCC. The expression of these circRNAs was examined by quantitative PCR in 233 sets of HCC and matched background normal liver tissues, and correlations between candidate circRNA expression and prognosis were evaluated. The results of quantitative PCR showed that expression of hsa_circ_0041150, hsa_circ_0001020 and hsa_circ_0008558 was significantly lower in HCC than in background normal liver tissues. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that low expression of hsa_circ_0001020, hsa_circ_0036683, and hsa_circ_0058087 was associated with poor recurrence-free (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in HCC. Additionally, multivariate analysis revealed that low hsa_circ_0036683 expression was a significant prognostic factor, independent from other clinicopathological features, for inferior RFS and OS. There was no significant association between the expression of these circRNAs and hepatitis B/C status or cirrhosis. This study therefore identified circRNAs as potential prognostic markers for patients who undergo curative surgery for HCC and highlighted hsa_circ_0036683 as the most useful biomarker.

Automated summary

Circular RNA (circRNA) is a promising biomarker for cancer due to its high stability from circular structure. In this study, downregulated circRNAs in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were identified and their associations with prognosis were evaluated. The low expression of hsa_circ_0036683 was found to be an independent prognostic factor for poor outcomes in HCC patients undergoing curative surgery.