Overexpression of microRNA-130a predicts adverse prognosis of primary gastrointestinal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Primary gastrointestinal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (PGI-DLBCL) is a highly heterogeneous type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A number of studies have demonstrated that microRNA-130a (miR-130a) serves a role in the tumorigenesis and prognosis of numerous human tumors. However, to the best of our knowledge, the prognostic significance of miR-130a in PGI-DLBCL remains unknown. The present study explored the association between miR-130a and the clinical outcomes of PGI-DLBCL. Relative miR-130a expression was assessed by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect expression levels of BCL-2, c-MYC, neprilysin, B-cell lymphoma 6 protein, PWWP domain-containing DNA repair factor 3A and proliferation marker protein Ki-67. A receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed to analyze the specificity and sensitivity of microRNA levels in the diagnosis of PGI-DLBCL. Survival curves were constructed using the Kaplan-Meier method. In the present study, miR-130a expression was notably higher in patients with PGI-DLBCL compared with in the controls (P<0.0001). miR-130a overexpression was closely associated with a high International Prognostic Index score (3–5) and drug resistance (P=0.017 and P=0.044, respectively). No significant difference in other clinical features was observed. Patients with increased expression levels of miR-130a had lower overall survival [hazard ratio (HR), 2.998; 95% CI, 1.347-6.673; P=0.007] and progression-free survival (HR, 3.325; 95% CI, 1.488-7.429; P=0.003) compared with patients who had lower expression levels of miR-130a. Furthermore, multivariate Cox regression analysis suggested that miR-130a was a negative prognostic parameter in PGI-DLBCL. Therefore, upregulation of miR-130a could become a potential prognostic marker for PGI-DLBCL. Additionally, further study of these results may have important guiding significance for the prognosis of patients with PGI-DLBCL in the clinical setting.