MicroRNAs as biomarkers of acute lung injury

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a common and complex inflammatory lung diseases affecting critically ill patients requiring mechanical ventilation. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a novel pathway of non-coding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level, have emerged as a novel class of gene expression, and can play important roles in inflammation or apoptosis, which are common manifestations of ARDS and diffuse alveolar damage (DAD). In the present review, we discuss the role of miRNAs as biomarkers of ARDS and DAD, and their potential use as therapeutic targets for this condition.