Down-regulation of Dicer expression in cervical cancer tissues

Dicer is a component of the MicroRNA-producing machinery. The altered expression of Dicer may play a role in oncogenesis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the expression of Dicer in cervical cancer tissues and its significance. Cancer tissues, para-cancer tissues and corresponding normal tissues were obtained from 31 cervical cancer patients undergoing surgery. Expression levels of Dicer mRNA were evaluated in these tissues using the real-time reverse transcription PCR. The association of the Dicer expression levels with clinical characteristics was also examined. The expression levels of Dicer mRNA were decreased in 66.7 % (18/27) and 76.9 % (20/26) of cervical cancer and para-cancer specimens, respectively, compared with corresponding normal tissues. The lower expression levels of Dicer in cancer tissues were associated with advanced tumor stages (p = 0.03) and with metastasis (p = 0.01). The down-regulation of Dicer expression in cancer and para-cancer tissues was observed. The lower expression of Dicer in cancer tissues demonstrated to be associated with tumor stages and metastasis. Future studies with a greater number of tissues to more conclusively determine the extent of low-level expression of Dicer in cervical cancer are warranted.