Effect of miRNA gene polymorphisms on prostate cancer susceptibility: a case–control study and an updated meta-analysis

Prostate cancer (CaP) is the most commonly diagnosed malignant tumor and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men. Due to their potential functional significance, microRNA genes are considered promising candidates for identifying cancer-related genetic biomarkers. This study investigates the association between microRNA-196a2 (rs11614913), microRNA-146a (rs2910164), and microRNA-149 (rs2292832) and the risk of prostate cancer among males in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). A total of 320 male participants were recruited from various areas of the Jammu region, including 120 confirmed cases and 200 unrelated healthy controls. Genotyping was performed using PCR-RFLP, and the results were validated through Sanger sequencing. Additionally, a meta-analysis was also conducted to validate the results. Our study found a significant association between microRNA-196a2 and the risk of developing prostate cancer (CaP) in our population, with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.62 and a p-value of 0.05. In contrast, we observed no significant associations for microRNA-146 (rs2910164) and microRNA-149 (rs2292832). Additionally, a meta-analysis of microRNA-146a also confirmed its lack of association with prostate cancer. MicroRNA-196a2 gene polymorphism is linked to a higher risk of prostate cancer (CaP), while microRNA-146 and microRNA-149 did not show an association with CaP.