Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is more frequent in children than in adults. The ALL is a hematological neoplasia, which is characterized by the hyperproliferation of lymphoid precursors in bone marrow. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of noncoding RNAs that regulate mRNA expression at posttranscriptional level. miRNAs regulate different biological processes such as development, proliferation, apoptosis, hematopoiesis, drug resistance, and tumorigenesis. It has also been observed that the expression of miRNAs can be used to the classification of the different subtypes of ALL. Likewise, miRNAs can also be used to determine the prognostic value and may represent potential therapeutic target molecules in the treatment of ALL.
Part of the book: Advances in Hematologic Malignancies