Citation: Kciuk, M.; Yahya, E.B.;
Mohamed, M.M.I.; Abdulsamad,
M.A.; Allaq, A.A.; Gieleci ´ nska, A.;
Kontek, R. Insights into the Role of
LncRNAs and miRNAs in Glioma
Progression and Their Potential as
Novel Therapeutic Targets. Cancers
2023, 15, 3298. https://doi.org/
10.3390/cancers15133298
Academic Editors: Guillermo Barreto,
Marco Marcia and Bruno
Charpentier
Received: 29 May 2023
Revised: 19 June 2023
Accepted: 20 June 2023
Published: 22 June 2023
Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
cancers
Review
Insights into the Role of LncRNAs and miRNAs in Glioma
Progression and Their Potential as Novel Therapeutic Targets
Mateusz Kciuk
1,2,
* , Esam Bashir Yahya
3,
* , Montaha Mohamed Ibrahim Mohamed
4
,
Muhanad A. Abdulsamad
5
, Abdulmutalib A. Allaq
6
, Adrianna Gieleci ´ nska
1,2
and Renata Kontek
1
1
Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Genetics, University of Lodz, 90-237 Lodz, Poland
2
Doctoral School of Exact and Natural Sciences, University of Lodz, 90-237 Lodz, Poland
3
Bioprocess Technology Division, School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia,
Penang 11800, Malaysia
4
Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Mohail Aseer, King Khalid University, Abha 62529, Saudi Arabia
5
Department of Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, Sabratha University, Sabratha 00218, Libya
6
Faculty of Applied Science, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam 40450, Malaysia
* Correspondence: mateusz.kciuk@edu.uni.lodz.pl (M.K.); essam912013@gmail.com (E.B.Y.)
Simple Summary: Recent research has revealed the involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs)
and micro RNAs (miRNAs) in glioma development and advancement, suggesting their potential as
biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Late-stage diagnosis and the limited effectiveness of conventional
treatments contribute to poor glioma outcomes, highlighting the need for early detection methods.
Advances in biotechnology and neuroscience have shed light on non-coding RNAs role in glioma
angiogenesis and progression. This review explores the impact of lncRNAs and miRNAs on gene
regulation, either promoting or inhibiting glioma progression and establishes connections between
these crucial cancer-related molecules.
Abstract: Accumulating evidence supports that both long non-coding and micro RNAs (lncRNAs
and miRNAs) are implicated in glioma tumorigenesis and progression. Poor outcome of gliomas has
been linked to late-stage diagnosis and mostly ineffectiveness of conventional treatment due to low
knowledge about the early stage of gliomas, which are not possible to observe with conventional
diagnostic approaches. The past few years witnessed a revolutionary advance in biotechnology and
neuroscience with the understanding of tumor-related molecules, including non-coding RNAs that
are involved in the angiogenesis and progression of glioma cells and thus are used as prognostic
biomarkers as well as novel therapeutic targets. The emerging research on lncRNAs and miRNAs
highlights their crucial role in glioma progression, offering new insights into the disease. These non-
coding RNAs hold significant potential as novel therapeutic targets, paving the way for innovative
treatment approaches against glioma. This review encompasses a comprehensive discussion about
the role of lncRNAs and miRNAs in gene regulation that is responsible for the promotion or the
inhibition of glioma progression and collects the existing links between these key cancer-related
molecules.
Keywords: glioma; long RMA; micro non-coding RNAs; gene therapy; brain tumors
1. Introduction
The majority of the human genome is composed of non-protein coding genes. These
genes do not code for proteins but instead produce various types of RNA molecules that
are not translated into proteins [1]. For a long time, the non-translated regions of the
human genome were often referred to as “junk DNA” because their function was not well
understood. However, in the last two decades, advancements in genomic research have
revealed that these non-coding regions play critical roles in gene regulation and other
important biological processes [2]. In general, non-coding RNAs can be classified into small
Cancers 2023, 15, 3298. https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15133298 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/cancers