Identification offour snoRNAs (SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B) as novel non-invasive biomarkers for diagnosis of breast cancer

Sep 21, 2026

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Background Emerging data point to the critical role of snoRNA in the emergence of different types of cancer, but scarcely in breast cancer (BC). This study aimed to clarify the differential expressions and potential diagnostic value of SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B in BC. Methods Differential snoRNAs were screened in BC tissues and adjacent tissues via SNORic datasets, then validated in plasma from BC patients and healthy volunteers using qPCR. Results The four snoRNAs were higher in cancerous tissues and in plasma, including early-stage cases, distinguishing BC from healthy controls via ROC analysis. Conclusion Upregulated plasma snoRNAs indicate potential diagnostic markers for BC and early-stage BC.

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Li et al. Cancer Cell International (2024) 24:55 [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12935-024-03237-0](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12935-024-03237-0) Cancer Cell International RESEARCH Open Access Identification offour snoRNAs (SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B) as novel non-invasive biomarkers for diagnosis of breast cancer Xiao Li 1, Xuan Zhao 1, Li Xie2, Xingguo Song 1 and Xianrang Song2* Abstract Background Emerging data point to the critical role of snoRNA in the emergence of different types of cancer, but scarcely in breast cancer (BC) . This study aimed to clarify the differential expressions and potential diagnostic value of SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B in BC. Methods We screened differential snoRNAs in BC tissues and adjacent tissues through SNORic datasets, and then we further verified them in the plasma of BC patients and healthy volunteers by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) . Results These four snoRNAs: SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B were considerably more abundant in cancerous tissues than in neighboring tissues in theTCGA database. Their plasma levels were also higher in BC and early-stage BC patients when compared to healthy controls. Furthermore, the ROC curve demonstrated that BC (AUC = 0 . 7521) and early-stage BC (AUC = 0 . 7305) might be successfully distinguished from healthy people by SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B. Conclusion Plasma snoRNAs: SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B were upregulated in BC and earlystage BC and can be used as potential diagnostic markers for BC and early-stage BC. Keywords snoRNAs, SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, SNORD49B, Biomarker, Breast cancer *Correspondence: Xianrang Song [xrsong@sdfmu.edu.cn](xrsong@sdfmu.edu.cn) 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University, Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, 440 Ji-Yan Road, Jinan 250117, Shandong Province, China 2Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Radiation Oncology, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University, Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China Introduction Breast cancer (BC), the most frequent gynecological cancer, has surpassed lung cancer to become the most frequently diagnosed cancer in the world, underscoring the importance of global guidance for optimal treatment [1]. According to statistical data from the National Cancer Center, BC was the most diagnosed malignant neoplasmand the second leading cause of cancer mortality among Chinese females, accounting for 16.72%(306,000) of all new cancer cases. About 71,700 people died in BC, with a crude mortality of 10.62 (per 105 population) in 2016 [2]. The good news is that the BC mortality is continuing to © The Author(s) 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit [http://creativecommons.org/l](http://creativecommons.org/l)icenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ([http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data. Li et al. Cancer Cell Internationa

FAQs

Which snoRNAs were evaluated as potential diagnostic biomarkers for breast cancer?

The study evaluated SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B as candidate non-invasive biomarkers for breast cancer diagnosis.

How were the snoRNAs identified and validated in this research?

Differential snoRNAs were screened in breast cancer tissues and adjacent tissues using SNORic datasets, then verified in patient and control plasma using quantitative PCR (qPCR).

What did the results show about snoRNA levels in breast cancer and early-stage patients?

SNORD16, SNORA73B, SCARNA4, and SNORD49B were more abundant in cancerous tissues than neighboring tissues, and their plasma levels were higher in breast cancer and early-stage patients compared with healthy controls.

How effective were these biomarkers at distinguishing patients from healthy people?

ROC analysis suggested these snoRNAs could distinguish breast cancer from healthy individuals (AUC = 0.7521) and early-stage breast cancer (AUC = 0.7305).

Sep 21, 2026

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