The Multiple Roles of Hepatitis B Virus X Protein (HBx) Dysregulated MicroRNA in Hepatitis B Virus-Associated Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HBV-HCC) and Immune Pathways
Kurt Sartorius 1 2 3 , Leo Swadling 4 , Ping An 5 , Julia Makarova 6 , Cheryl Winkler 5 , Anil Chuturgoon 2 , Anna Kramvis 7
Affiliations
Affiliations
1
Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.
2
Department of Public Health Medicine, School of Nursing and Public Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa.
3
UKZN Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Centre, Durban 4041, South Africa.
4
Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, London WC1E6BT, UK.
5
Basic Research Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc. Frederick Nat. Lab. for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD 20878, USA.
6
National Research University Higher School of Economics, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, 10100 Moscow, Russia.
7
Hepatitis Virus Diversity Research Unit, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.
PMID: 32664401 DOI: 10.3390/v12070746
Abstract
Currently, the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) [HBV-HCC] relies on blunt tools that are unable to offer effective therapy for later stage pathogenesis. The potential of miRNA to treat HBV-HCC offer a more targeted approach to managing this lethal carcinoma; however, the complexity of miRNA as an ancillary regulator of the immune system remains poorly understood. This review examines the overlapping roles of HBx-dysregulated miRNA in HBV-HCC and immune pathways and seeks to demonstrate that specific miRNA response in immune cells is not independent of their expression in hepatocytes. This interplay between the two pathways may provide us with the possibility of using candidate miRNA to manipulate this interaction as a potential therapeutic option.