Retinoblastoma (RB) is a childhood malignancy caused by inactivation of the RB gene, with neuron-specific enolase (NSE) levels considered as its diagnostic marker. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been proven to play a significant role in multiple physiological and pathological processes and several miRNAs were identified as tumor biomarkers in recent studies. In the present study, 65 plasma samples were collected from RB patients and 65 samples from healthy individuals to serve as controls. The miRNA levels were measured via quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and their association with RB was assessed by statistical data analysis and receiver operating characteristic curves. Plasma miRNA (miR)-320, miR-let-7e and miR-21 levels were downregulated in the patient samples, the areas under the curves (AUCs) were 0.548–0.660, whereas the AUCs of combined classifiers were ≥0.990. The plasma miRNA levels, particularly of miR-320, were found to be of value in RB diagnosis and may be considered as novel diagnostic biomarkers.

中文翻译：

---

血浆microRNA-320，microRNA-let-7e和microRNA-21作为检测视网膜母细胞瘤的新型潜在生物标记

视网膜母细胞瘤（RB）是由RB基因失活引起的儿童期恶性肿瘤，神经元特异性烯醇化酶（NSE）水平被认为是其诊断标记。MicroRNA（miRNA）已被证明在多种生理和病理过程中起着重要作用，并且在最近的研究中已鉴定出几种miRNA作为肿瘤生物标志物。在本研究中，从RB患者中收集了65个血浆样品，从健康个体中收集了65个样品作为对照。通过定量逆转录-聚合酶链反应测量miRNA水平，并通过统计数据分析和受体工作特征曲线评估其与RB的关联。患者样品中的血浆miRNA（miR）-320，miR-let-7e和miR-21水平下调，曲线下面积（AUC）为0.548-0.660，而组合分类器的AUC≥0.990。发现血浆miRNA水平，特别是miR-320的血浆RNA水平在RB诊断中具有价值，可以被认为是新型的诊断生物标志物。