ArticleCancer reports (Hoboken, N.J.)2026
Integrated Network Analysis Suggests an miR-21/MMP/VEGF-Associated Regulatory Axis in Gastric Cancer.
Article in Cancer reports (Hoboken, N.J.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND,
aimsGastric cancer (GC) pathogenesis involves complex molecular interactions that remain incompletely understood at a biological systems level. While microRNA-21 (miR-21), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have been individually implicated in GC, their integrated role as a coordinated regulatory network remains uncharacterized. And we aim to reveal novel biology systems level insights into the miR-21/MMP/VEGF regulatory axis.
methodsIn this study, 27 tumor and matched adjacent noncancerous tissues in GC patients were analyzed. Expression of miR-21, MMP-2/9, and VEGF was analyzed using qRT-PCR, Western blotting, and zymography (for MMP-2/9 activity). Computational analyses integrated KEGG pathway enrichment (clusterProfiler), random forest machine learning, structural equation modeling (lavaan), and protein-protein interaction network analysis (igraph) to decipher system-level organization. All statistical analyses and computational modeling were performed using RStudio version 4.4.2.
resultsPathway analysis revealed significant enrichment in cancer-related pathways, including MicroRNAs in cancer (p = 8.66 × 10
conclusionOur integrated biology systems analysis suggests that the miR-21/MMP-9/VEGF axis may represent a candidate regulatory network in GC, with miR-21 appearing to play a central role in tumor progression. These findings offer preliminary insights and highlight molecules of interest for further studies for intervention in GC pathogenesis.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.