Emerging roles of miR-210 and other non-coding RNAs in the hypoxic response

Hypoxia is a key component of the tumor microenviron- merit and represents a well-documented source of thera- peutic failure in clinical oncology. Recent work has provided support for the idea that non-coding RNAs, and in particular, microRNAs, may play important roles in the adaptive response to low oxygen in tumors. Specifically, all published studies agree that the induction of microRNA- 210 （miR-210） is a consistent feature of the hypoxic re- sponse in both normal and malignant cells, miR-210 is a robust target of hypoxia-inducible factors, and its overex- pression has been detected in a variety of diseases with a hypoxic component, including most solid tumors. High levels of miR-210 have been linked to an in vivo hypoxic sig- nature and to adverse prognosis in breast and pancreatic cancer patients. A wide variety of miR-210 targets have been identified, pointing to roles in mitochondrial metabol- ism, angiogenesis, DNA damage response, apoptosis, and cell survival. Such targets are suspected to affect the devel- opment of tumors in multiple ways; therefore, an increased knowledge about miR-210＇s functions may lead to novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in cancer.