Bioinformatic Investigation of Micro RNA-802 Target Genes, Protein Networks, and Its Potential Prognostic Value in Breast Cancer

Background: An increasing number of studies have suggested that unveiling the mo-lecular network of miRNAs may provide novel therapeutic targets or biomarkers. In this study, we investigated the probable molecular functions that are related to mi-croRNA-802 (miR-802) and evaluated its prognostic value in breast cancer utilizing bioinformatics tools. Methods: PPI network, pathway enrichment and transcription factor analysis were applied to obtain hub genes among overlapping genes of four miRNA target predic-tion databases. Prognosis value assessments and expression analysis of hub genes using bioinformatics tools, as well as their literature validation were performed. Results: Our results showed a significant correlation of the miR-802 overexpression with poor patient survival rate (BC, p=2.7e-5). We determined 247 target genes signif-icant for GO and KEGG terms. Analysis of TFs by TRUST showed that RUNX3, FOXO3, and E2F1 are possible TFs that regulate the miR-802 expression and target genes network. According to our analysis; 21 genes might have an important function in miR-802 molecular processes and regulatory networks. The result shows that among these 21 genes, 8 genes (CASC3, ITGA4, AGO3, TARDBP, MED13L, SF1, SNRPE and CRNKL1) are positively correlated with patient survival. Therefore these genes could be considered and experimentally evaluated as a prognostic biomarker for breast cancer. Conclusion: The comprehensive bioinformatics study on miR-802 target genes provid-ed insight into miR-802 mediated pathways and processes. Furthermore, representing candidate target genes by prognostic values indicates the potential clinical applica-tion of miR-802 in breast cancer.