Exploring the Role of <i>Escherichia coli</i> K-12 in Reducing MIR17HG Expression as a Poor Prognostic Biomarker in Colorectal Cancer

Abstract

Background: Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play significant roles in various cellular processes, and alterations in their expression levels can contribute to the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC). Objectives: This study aims to identify lncRNAs highly associated with poor prognosis in CRC and determine those that exhibit significant expression changes under the influence of Escherichia coli K-12. Methods: Potentially susceptible lncRNAs to expression modulation in the presence of E. coli K-12 were identified by analyzing GSE50040 datasets. Data from the cancer genome Atlas (TCGA) were utilized to assess E. coli K-12-affected lncRNAs with the most significant impact on CRC pathogenesis. The association between the candidate lncRNA and patient prognosis was investigated using clinical data. The co-expression network was employed to identify pathways related to the identified lncRNA via the MsigDB database. To validate the in silico findings, CRC and adjacent normal samples were examined using the RT-qPCR method. Results: Cox regression analysis demonstrated that MIR17HG is a strong biomarker associated with poor prognosis in CRC patients. Increased expression of MIR17HG in cancer samples was correlated with key pathways involving cell proliferation, anti-apoptosis, and metastasis. RT-qPCR results showed that the expression level of MIR17HG in CRC samples was significantly higher than in normal samples. Further analysis revealed that MIR17HG expression is susceptible to suppression by E. coli K-12. Conclusions: High expression of MIR17HG in cancer samples is associated with an increased probability of mortality in CRC patients. Our study highlights the potential of E. coli K-12 to reduce CRC malignancy by downregulating MIR17HG expression.