Challenges, Opportunities and Best Practice when Using miRNA as Disease Biomarkers in Liquid Biopsies - Abstract
Early diagnosis and monitoring of treatment are essential for the efficient management of patients. In this regard, significant efforts have been made to find informative, blood (and other biological fluids) -based biomarkers. Thanks to their innate characteristics, microRNAs (miRNAs) hold the promise of being ideal biomarker molecules for healthcare needs and in cancer in particular. Consequently, the number of studies exploring such exciting possibility has multiplied exponentially in the last couple of years. However, the caveat is that this field is still very much in its infancy, and special attention must be paid to the technological aspects involved in miRNA handling and detection, if miRNAs are to fully realize their potential. In this mini review, we outline the clear possibilities of the circulating miRNome as a source of clinically-relevant biomarkers, describe the challenges faced by this research area, and offer suggestions of best practice in order to facilitate the translation of laboratory studies to the clinic in the not too distant future.