BACKGROUND/AIMS:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNA molecules which play a significant role in transcriptional and translational regulation. Published data on the association between the miRNA SNPs and prostate cancer (PCa) risk are somewhat inconclusive. METHODS:We performed a meta-analysis of all available studies including 2,227 patients and 2,331 control subjects to evaluate the impact of three common genetic variants of microRNAs in prostate cancer risk. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were utilized to investigate the strength of the association. RESULTS:For miR-499 polymorphism, a significant association was observed between the rs3746444 A>G polymorphism and PCa risk in heterozygote comparison and dominant genetic model, in particular in Asian population subgroup. For miR-146a polymorphism, the rs2910164 CC genotype was associated with decreased PCa risk in Asian population in homozygote comparison. In addition, rs2910164 CC genotype had a weekly higher percentage value in subgroup of Gleason score < 7. Similar results were also indicated in localized prostate cancer in subgroup analysis by tumor stage. For miR-196a2 polymorphism, no association was observed between this variant and PCa risk in the overall group. However, in stratified analysis by ethnicity, we found that rs11614913 T allele was a risk factor for Asian PCa patients. CONCLUSIONS:Polymorphisms of miR-196a2 rs11614913, miR-146a rs2910164, and miR-499 rs3746444 may contribute to the risk for developing prostate cancer in Asian descendants. Moreover, miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphism was related to PCa prognosis.