miRNA expression signatures in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs)

To clarify the microRNA (miRNA) expression signatures in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), a series of 32 GIST specimens were analyzed using Agilent miRNA microarray V3. Unsupervised hierarchical clustering revealed that GISTs can be categorized into 2 groups according to the expression of a miRNA cluster encoded on chromosome 14q32.31. Total RNA was extracted from 32 fresh frozen GIST specimens obtained from surgical resections. Expression of 851 miRNAs was analyzed using Human miRNA Microarray V3 (Rel 12.0 G4470C; Agilent technologies, Santa Clara, CA, USA). Risk grade was assessed according to the risk definition system proposed by Fletcher et al. (Hum Pathol. 2002;33:459-65.)