Serum miR371 in testicular germ cell cancer before and after orchiectomy, assessed by digital-droplet PCR in a prospective study

AbstractMicroRNA-371a-3p (miR371) has been suggested as a sensitive biomarker in testicular germ cell cancer (TGCC). We aimed to compare miR371 with the classical biomarkers α-fetoprotein (AFP) and β-human chorionic gonadotropin (hCGβ). Overall, 180 patients were prospectively enrolled in the study, with serum samples collected before and after orchiectomy. We compared the use of digital droplet PCR (RT-ddPCR) with the quantitative PCR used by others for detection of miR371. The novel RT-ddPCR protocol showed high performance in detection of miR371 in serum samples. In the study cohort, miR371 was measured using RT-ddPCR. MiR371 detected CS1 of the seminoma and the non-seminoma sub-types with a sensitivity of 87% and 89%, respectively. The total sensitivity was 89%. After orchiectomy, miR371 levels declined in 154 of 159 TGCC cases. The ratio of miR371 pre- and post-orchiectomy was 20.5 in CS1 compared to 6.5 in systemic disease. AFP and hCGβ had sensitivities of 52% and 51% in the non-seminomas. MiR371 is a sensitive marker that performs better than the classical markers in all sub-types and clinical stages. Especially for the seminomas CS1, the high sensitivity of miR371 in detecting TGCC cells may have clinical implications.

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No association between human parvovirus B19 and testicular germ cell cancer

Journal of General Virology ◽

10.1099/0022-1317-83-9-2321 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 83 (9) ◽

pp. 2321-2324 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

T. Tolfvenstam ◽

N. Papadogiannakis ◽

A. Andersen ◽

O. Akre

Keyword(s):

Germ Cell ◽

Parvovirus B19 ◽

Cell Cancer ◽

Germ Cell Cancer ◽

Human Parvovirus B19 ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Testicular Germ Cell ◽

Viral Receptor ◽

Testicular Carcinoma ◽

Testicular Germ Cell Cancer

The incidence of testicular germ cell cancer, which is the most common cancer among young male adults, is increasing. The aetiology remains unknown, although a virus has been proposed. A previous study has shown a high prevalence of human parvovirus B19 (B19) DNA in the testes of patients with testicular germ cell tumours (85%) and suggested that B19 may play a role in tumour development. To address this question of causality, seroreactivity to B19 was studied among cases (n=80) and controls (n=241) using serum samples drawn before the onset of disease, in addition to an elucidation of the frequency of virus DNA in a retrospectively collected 2-year testicular carcinoma series. No association was found between B19 seropositivity and the risk of testicular cancer (odds ratio=1·03; 95% confidence interval=0·60–1·77) nor was there any dose-response relation (P for trend=0·53). This study did, however, confirm the observation that B19 DNA can be detected in testicular carcinoma tissue, as 4 of 24 cases were found to be positive, while no B19 DNA could be detected in the control cases. It is speculated that this finding may be due to susceptibility of the carcinoma cells to B19 virus owing to high-level expression of the viral receptor glycosphingolipid (Gb4) and possible other putative cellular factors resulting in a localized persistence initiated after the development of cancer.

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