Functional variants of TIM-3/HAVCR2 3′UTR in lymphoblastoid cell lines

AIM: Variants of TIM-3/HAVCR2 3′UTR miRNA binding sites are significantly associated with cancer; however, roles in post-transcriptional regulation have not been elucidated. METHODS: The regulatory and coding region single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of TIM-3/HAVCR2 were identified using an online database. Single nucleotide polymorphism Function Prediction was used to predict potential functional relevance of miRNA binding sites. RESULTS: The analysis indicated rs9313439, rs4704846, rs3087616 and rs1036199 affect possible miRNA binding sites in TIM-3/HAVCR2 3′UTR. We used additional data on genotypes and limited minor allele frequency >5% in the HapMap populations. Only rs3087616 and rs4704846 were significantly associated with TIM-3/HAVCR2. CONCLUSION: Both rs3087616 and rs4704846 could be putative variants mediating post-transcriptional regulation of the TIM-3/HAVCR2. Deeper understanding of how 3′UTR variants influence the activity by TIM-3/HAVCR2 for therapy against cancer.