Tissue and blood microRNA array profiles of colorectal cancer patients. Homo sapiens

microRNAs (miRNAs) are short, non-coding RNA molecules that act as regulators of gene expression. Circulating blood miRNAs offer great potential as cancer biomarkers. The objective of the study was to correlate the differential expression of miRNAs in tissue and blood in the identification of biomarkers for early detection of colorectal cancer (CRC). Overall design: miRNA biomarker discovery via miRNA array profiling using paired cancer tissues (n = 30) and blood samples (CRC, n = 42; control, n = 18).