MALAT1 as a potential salivary biomarker in oral squamous cell carcinoma through targeting miRNA‐124

Abstract

AbstractObjectivesTo determine the diagnostic accuracy of the long non‐coding RNA “MALAT1” measured in the saliva of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and assess the salivary expression of microRNA‐124, which MALAT1 targets.Subjects and MethodsForty subjects were collected in a consecutive pattern and allocated into two groups. Group A included 20 patients with OSCC, while Group B included 20 healthy subjects. Salivary expression of MALAT1 and microRNA (miRNA)‐124 was evaluated in the two study groups using quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction and correlated with histopathological examination of OSCC subjects.ResultsOSCC yielded a statistically significant higher expression of MALAT1 than healthy controls and a lower expression of miRNA‐124 in OSCC than controls. There is a statistically significant inverse relationship between salivary MALAT1 and miRNA‐124. Moreover, there is a statistically significant difference in the MALAT1 expression in saliva samples from metastatic cases compared with non‐metastatic cases, as well as in patients with lymph node involvement compared with those without involvement. At a cut‐off value of 2.24, salivary MALAT1 exhibited 95% sensitivity and 90% specificity in differentiating OSCC from healthy subjects.ConclusionSalivary MALAT1 acts as a sponge for miRNA‐124 and could be a potential salivary biomarker for OSCC.