Comparative Microarray Analysis of microRNA Expression Profiles in Primary Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma, Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma Metastases and Benign Melanocytic Naevi

Perturbations in microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles has been reported for cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM). With regards to a rapidly growing number of newly discovered miRNA sequences, the availability of up-to-date miRNA expression profiles for primary cutaneous malignant melanoma (PCMM), cutaneous malignant melanoma metastases (CMMM) and benign melanocytic naevi (BMN) is limited. Patients with PCMM, CMMM and BMN are included in the study to perform an exploratory analysis by miRNA expression profiling using microarrays. Expression levels of miRNA candidates will be validated by TaqMan real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).