Exosomal Long Noncoding <scp>RNA</scp>s are Differentially Expressed in the Cervicovaginal Lavage Samples of Cervical Cancer Patients

Background As the second leading cause of cancer morbidity and death in women, cervical cancer remains an important public health problem worldwide. Novel biomarkers with high sensitivity and specificity for the early detection and diagnosis of cervical cancer are urgently needed. Increasing evidence shows that long noncoding RNA s (lnc RNA s) are differentially expressed in cancer tissues and may serve as diagnostic markers. In multiple tumor types, exosomes harboring lnc RNA s are actively released from tumor cells. In this study, we investigate the potential association of exosomal lnc RNA expression with cervical cancer. Methods Cervicovaginal lavage specimens were collected from patients with cervical cancer and cancer‐free volunteers who are HPV ‐positive or HPV ‐negative. Exosomes in these specimens were isolated by ultracentrifugation and confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. The exosomal lnc RNA s HOTAIR , MALAT 1, and MEG 3 were quantified by qRT ‐ PCR . Results Expression of HOTAIR , MALAT 1 and MEG 3 was predominantly observed in cervical cancer‐derived exosomes in cervicovaginal lavage samples. The expression levels of lnc RNA s were significantly different in exosomes isolated from cervical cancer patients compared to normal controls. Conclusions Our data suggest that lnc RNA s in exosomes isolated from cervicovaginal lavage are differentially expressed in cervical cancer patients and cancer‐free volunteers. Exosomal lnc RNA s may have great potential to be used for the early detection and diagnosis of cervical cancer, and serve as convenient and noninvasive biomarkers.