MiR-21 is one of the most frequently up-regulated miRNAs in pancreatic adenocarcinoma, a tumor sharing similar molecular features with ampullary adenocarcinomas (AVCs), above all with the pancreatic-biliary type.
The serum exosomal miR-21 level in PC was higher than that in the normal and chronic pancreatitis groups, but was not significantly correlated with PC differentiation and tumor stage.
We report that changes in miR expression patterns during progression of normal tissues to invasive pancreatic adenocarcinoma in the p48-Cre/LSL-Kras(G12D) mouse model mirrors the miR changes observed in human pancreatic cancer tissues. miR-148a/b and miR-375 expression were found decreased whereas miR-10, miR-21, miR-100 and miR-155 were increased when comparing normal tissues, premalignant lesions and invasive carcinoma in the mouse model.
Antisense inhibition of microRNA-21 or -221 arrests cell cycle, induces apoptosis, and sensitizes the effects of gemcitabine in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.