Narrow Results

ASIA-PACIFIC – First AI research center among Hong Kong universities

ASIA-PACIFIC – IRON MAN to the rescue

ASIA-PACIFIC – Breakthrough mouse model for diabetic kidney disease

ASIA-PACIFIC – Marmosets as in vivo models for developing immune-based therapies

REST OF THE WORLD – Using big data to reduce the risk of stroke

REST OF THE WORLD – New partnership to improve rare cancer patient care

Iron is an essential nutrient required for normal cellular functions, growth, and proliferation. Iron homeostasis is maintained at the cellular and systemic levels by strict regulation of genes involved in the process of iron uptake, storage, export, and surveillance of iron levels. Cellular iron homeostasis is dysregulated in cancer to sustain rapid growth and proliferation. Cellular iron levels are increased in cancer by manipulating the expression of genes involved in iron metabolism. Recent studies show that a class of small non-coding RNA known as microRNA (miRNA) play a major role in the control of iron metabolism. This review summarizes the significance of iron in cancer prognosis and how miRNAs regulate the expression of genes involved in iron metabolism to increase the cellular iron availability in cancer.