Editorial
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2017. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Nov 21, 2017; 23(43): 7653-7656
Published online Nov 21, 2017. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v23.i43.7653
Noncoding RNAs as drivers of the phenotypic plasticity of oesophageal mucosa
Matteo Fassan, Sonia Facchin, Giada Munari, Giuseppe Nicolò Fanelli, Greta Lorenzon, Edoardo Savarino
Matteo Fassan, Giada Munari, Giuseppe Nicolò Fanelli, Surgical Pathology Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Padua, Padua 35100, Italy
Sonia Facchin, Greta Lorenzon, Edoardo Savarino, Gastroenterology Unit, Department of Surgical Oncology and Gastroenterology, University of Padua, Padua 35100, Italy
Author contributions: Facchin S, Munari G, Fanelli GN, Lorenzon G reviewed the literature and wrote the first draft of the paper; Fassan M and Savarino E conceived the idea, reviewed the literature and contributed to writing the paper and edited it extensively.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No conflict of interest related to this publication to be declared.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Edoardo Savarino, MD, PhD, Gastroenterology Unit, Department of Surgical Oncology and Gastroenterology, University of Padua, Via Giustiniani 2, Padua 35100, Italy edoardo.savarino@unipd.it
Telephone: +39-49-8217749 Fax: +39-49-8760820
Received: August 22, 2017
Peer-review started: August 23, 2017
First decision: September 28, 2017
Revised: October 18, 2017
Accepted: October 26, 2017
Article in press: October 26, 2017
Published online: November 21, 2017
Abstract

The histological commitment of the lower oesophageal mucosa largely depends on a complex molecular landscape. After extended inflammatory insult due to gastroesophageal reflux disease, squamous oesophageal mucosa may differentiate into columnar metaplastic mucosa. In this setting, the presence of intestinal metaplasia is considered the starting point of Barrett’s carcinogenetic cascade. Aside from secondary prevention strategies for Barrett’s mucosa (BM) patients, there are multiple endoscopic ablative therapies available for BM eradication and for the replacement of metaplastic epithelia with a neosquamous mucosa. However, BM frequently recurs in a few years, which supports the notable phenotypic plasticity of the oesophageal mucosa. In recent years, several reports pinpointed a class of small noncoding RNAs, the microRNAs (miRNAs), as principal effectors and regulators of oesophageal mucosa metaplastic (and neoplastic) transformation. Because of miRNAs notable stability in fixed archival diagnostic specimens, expression profiling of miRNAs represent an innovative diagnostic, prognostic and predictive tool in the stratification of phenotypic alterations in the oesophageal mucosa.

Keywords: Barrett’s mucosa, Biomarkers, Noncoding RNAs, MicroRNAs, Metaplasia

Core tip: Recent advances in understanding the molecular role of noncoding RNAs in Barrett's carcinogenesis have significantly contributed to the identification of novel and alternative molecular pathways involved in this carcinogenetic setting. In the future, these data may significantly influence the planning of secondary prevention strategies for Barrett’s mucosa patients and help to select new therapies.