Journal News

JLR: Using microRNAs to target cancer cells

Dawn Hayward
March 1, 2016

Lipids form the membranes of our cells and serve as rainy day fuel. However, cancer cells have a habit of dysregulating every possible pathway they can, including lipid metabolism, generating an overabundance of lipids. Fortunately, the body already produces molecules that have the potential to stop this dysregulation in its tracks: microRNAs.

Summary of the metabolic pathways altered in cancer that are described in this review

In a recent review in the Journal of Lipid Research, Marta Gómez de Cedrón and Ana Ramírez de Molina of the Madrid Institute of Advanced Studies delve into exactly which microRNAs can be used to target cancer cells.

Lipids, molecules known for their insolubility in water, are synthesized to provide membrane integrity and are signaling molecules used by downstream effectors in the cell. As an energy source, lipids are broken down via beta-oxidation, and the intermediates can be used in other metabolic pathways.

MicroRNAs, meanwhile, are small single-stranded RNA molecules that can stop the synthesis of proteins. They bind to mRNA transcripts in the cell and cause their degradation, preventing production of proteins that cancer cells so desperately need.

The authors of the JLR review discuss several lipid-metabolism enzymes that cancer cells rely on whose targeting could prevent the synthesis and dissemination of lipids altogether. For example, an enzyme called fatty acid synthase, which is involved in the making of lipids, is upregulated and overused in cancer cells. Activation of a microRNA targeting this gene may shut down production of this enzyme and turn off this essential pathway. Mono-acyl glycerol lipase, which is involved in storing these lipids, may also be targeted.

Why is all of this important? If researchers can use normal cells’ machinery to target cancer cells specifically, the cancer may be slowed or completely halted. In fact, scientists have used antisense oligonucleotides that bind to microRNAs and repress their action as well as primary microRNAs, which mimic RNA of choice and activate their function. These methods have been used as cancer therapy in clinical trials.

MicroRNAs stand out from conventional gene-therapy-based approaches and have a niche in lipid metabolism. They can be designed specifically to target a gene and serve as modulators rather than on/off switches. Increased lipid formation and breakdown in cancer cells creates vulnerability that might be taken advantage of by microRNAs. In addition, cancer as a whole involves a combination of many factors, and microRNAs could lead the attack as professional pathway regulators to reset the normal metabolic landscape.

Enjoy reading ASBMB Today?

Become a member to receive the print edition four times a year and the digital edition monthly.

Learn more
Dawn Hayward

Dawn Hayward earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Get the latest from ASBMB Today

Enter your email address, and we’ll send you a weekly email with recent articles, interviews and more.

Latest in Science

Science highlights or most popular articles

Sweet secrets of sperm glycosylation
Journal News

Sweet secrets of sperm glycosylation

March 12, 2025

Scientists from Utrecht University uncover similar glycosylation patterns in sperm from bulls, boars and humans, distinct from those found in blood across species. These findings may improve IVF and farming techniques.

From the Journals: JLR
Journal News

From the Journals: JLR

March 11, 2025

Promising therapeutic candidate for steatosis. Unique lipid profiles in glycogen storage disease. Microglial lactic acid mediates neuroinflammation. Read about these recent papers.

Meet Robert Helsley
Interview

Meet Robert Helsley

March 6, 2025

The Journal of Lipid Research junior associate editor studies chronic liver disease and was the first in his family to attend college.

From the Journals: MCP
Journal News

From the Journals: MCP

March 4, 2025

Protein acetylation helps plants adapt to light. Mapping protein locations in 3D tissues. Demystifying the glycan–protein interactome. Read about these recent papers.

Exploring life’s blueprint: Gene expression in development and evolution
In-person Conference

Exploring life’s blueprint: Gene expression in development and evolution

March 3, 2025

Meet Julia Zeitlinger and David Arnosti — two co-chairs of the ASBMB’s 2025 meeting on gene expression, to be held June 26-29, in Kansas City, Missouri.

From the journals: JLR
Journal News

From the journals: JLR

Feb. 27, 2025

Protein analysis of dopaminergic neurons. Predicting immunotherapy responses in lung cancer. ZASP: An efficient proteomics sample prep method. Read about papers on these topics recently published in Molecular & Cellular Proteomics.