Serum levels of microRNAs can specifically predict liver injury of chronic hepatitis B

AIM： To investigate whether circulating microRNAs （miRNAs） can serve as molecular markers to predict liver injury resulted from chronic hepatitis B （CHB）. METHODS： The profiles of serum miRNA expression were first generated with serum samples collected from 10 patients with CHB and 10 healthy donors （Ctrls） by microarray analysis. The levels of several miRNAs were further quantitated by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction with serum samples from another 24 CHB patients and 24 Ctrls. Serum samples of 20 patients with nonalcohlic steatohepatitis （NASH） were also included for comparison. The comparison in the levels of miRNAs between groups （CHB, NASH and Ctrl） was analyzed with Mann-Whitney U-test. The cor- relation between miRNAs and clinical pathoparameters was analyzed using Spearman correlation analysis or canonical correlation analysis. The receiver-operator characteristic （ROC） curves were also generated to de- termine the specificity and sensitivity of each individual miRNA in distinguishing patients with CriB from Ctrls. RESULTS： miRNA profile analysis showed that 34 miR- NAs were differentially expressed between CriB and Ctrl subjects, in which 12 were up-regulated and 22 down-regulated in CriB subject （fold change 〉 2.0 and P 〈 0.01）. The median levels of miR-122, -572, -575 and -638 were significantly higher （P 〈 1.00 × 10-5） while miR-744 significantly lower （P 〈 1.0× 10-6） in Crib compared with the Ctrl. The levels of miR-122, -572 and -638 were also higher （P 〈 1.00×10-3） while the level of miR-744 lower in CriB （P 〈 0.05） than in NASH, although the difference between them was not as significant as that between CHB and Ctrl. ROC curve analysis revealed that the levels of miR-122, -572, -575, -638 and -744 in serum were sensitive and specific enough to distinguish CriB, NASH and Ctrl. Multivariate analysis further showed that the levels of these miRNAs were correlated with the liver function parameters. Most significantly, it was the scatter plot of principal component with the levels of these miRNAs, but not the parameters of liver function, which clearly distinguished CriB, NASH and Ctrl subjects. CONCLUSION： Serum levels of miR-122, -572, -575, -638 and -744 are deregulated in patients with CHB or NASH. The levels of these miRNAs may serve as po- tential biomarkers for liver injury caused by CHB and NASH.

Serum microRNA expression profiling revealing potential diagnostic biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma

Background:Recent studies have demonstrated that microRNAs(miRNAs)in the blood circulation can serve as promising diagnostic markers for cancers.This four-stage study aimed at finding serum miRNAs as potential biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma(LA)diagnosis.Methods:The study was carried out between 2016 and 2017.The Exiqon miRNA qPCR panel(3 LA vs.1 normal control[NC]pooled serum samples)was used for initial screening to acquire miRNA profiles.Thirty-five dysregulated miRNAs were further evaluated in the training(24 LA vs.24 NCs)and testing stages(110 LA vs.110 NCs)using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assays.Results:Four serum miRNAs(miR-133a-3p,miR-584-5p,miR-10b-5p,and miR-221-3p)were significantly overexpressed in LA patients compared with NCs.The diagnostic value of the four-miRNA panel was validated by an external cohort(36 LA vs.36 NCs).The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the four-miRNA panel in the training,testing,and external validation stages were 0.734,0.803,and 0.894 respectively.Meanwhile,the expression level of miR-221-3p was much higher in LA tumor samples than that in the adjacent normal tissues(19 LA vs.19 NCs).The expression level of miR-10b-5p was also elevated in the serum-derived exosomes samples(18 LA vs.18 NCs).The expression of miR-133a-3p,miR-584-5p,and miR-10b-5p was significantly elevated in LA patients with epidermal growth factor receptor mutation compared with NCs.Conclusion:The study established a four-miRNA signature in serum that could improve the diagnostic capability of LA.

Effect of Liraglutide on serum microRNA expression in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus

Objective To explore the differences of serum miRNA expression between patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)and healthy people;analyze the expression of miRNA-19a before and after Liraglutide treatment,and to analyze the association between miRNA-19a and pancreaticβcells’function.