An integrated mRNA–microRNA regulatory network identified INHBA and has-miR-135a-5p as predictors of gastric cancer recurrence

Gastric cancer (GC), a prevalent malignancy in Eastern Asia, is associated with aberrant transcriptional regulation. Here, we evaluated the mRNA and microRNA transcriptomes in patients with gastric cancer to gain insight into the molecular underpinnings of this disease. We observed upregulation of inhibin βA (INHBA), CDC7, SULF1, COL11A1, KIAA1199, and CLDN1 transcripts in gastric cancer and showed that INHBA upregulation was associated with cancer recurrence. Expression of has-miR-135a-5p was significantly lower in gastric cancer tissues compared with matched normal tissues and was inversely associated with INHBA expression. Our findings suggest that INHBA and has-miR-135a-5p expression serve as therapeutic markers of gastric cancer recurrence.