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Published on: October 27, 2023
Serum miR-214 as a novel biomarker for ankylosing spondylitis
Hyun Yi Kook1, So-Hee Jin2, Pu-Reum Park2
1Department of Rheumatology, Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Chonnam National University Medical School and Hospital & College of Nursing of Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea.
Objective:
Serum microRNA (miR) in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients has been rarely identified. The objective of this study was to find AS-specific miR in sera of patients with AS.
Methods:
Total RNAs were isolated from whole sera of patients with AS, patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and healthy controls (HC) using miRNeasy Serum/Plasma Kit. The presence of miR was assayed using Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer Small RNA assay. Each RNA sample was used for miR microarray. To verify microarray results, candidate circulating miRs were validated by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) using samples from patients with AS (n = 65), patients with RA (n = 25), and HCs (n = 39). Cycle threshold values were converted to copy numbers by drawing a standard curve using a synthetic chemical standard. All clinical values were also evaluated at the time of miR isolation.
Results:
A total of 887 miRs were screened for three groups. Lower expression of miR-214 in AS than in HC and RA was observed after normalization of raw data. Finally, lower expression of serum miR-214 was confirmed in AS after validation by qPCR. Correlation analysis showed that the level of miR-214 of AS was significantly associated with Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score-C-reactive protein (r = 0.299, P = 0.02). However, other disease-specific variables showed no statistical significance: gender (P = 0.286), peripheral arthritis (P = 0.634), enthesitis (P = 0.464), dacylitis (P = 0.750), psoriasis (P = 0.552), inflammatory bowel disease (P = 0.369), human leukocyte antigen-B27 positivity (P = 0.473), use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (P = 0.448), and use of tumor necrosis factor-blocker in the last 3 months (P = 0.505).
Conclusion:
miR-214 may serve as a noninvasive biomarker for diagnosis of AS. In addition, expression level of miR-214 was associated with disease activity.
Insights
Serum miR-214 is significantly lower in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients compared to healthy controls and rheumatoid arthritis patients. This finding suggests miR-214 may be a useful noninvasive biomarker for AS diagnosis and disease activity.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Immunology
- Genetics
Background:
- Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory disease with limited diagnostic biomarkers.
- Serum microRNAs (miRs) are increasingly recognized as potential biomarkers for various diseases.
- Identifying AS-specific miRs in serum could lead to improved diagnostics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify specific microRNAs (miRs) in the serum of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients.
- To evaluate the potential of these miRs as diagnostic biomarkers for AS.
Main Methods:
- Serum samples from AS patients, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, and healthy controls (HC) were analyzed for microRNA expression.
- MicroRNA isolation was performed using the miRNeasy Serum/Plasma Kit.
- Microarray analysis was followed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for validation.
Main Results:
- A total of 887 miRs were screened across the three groups.
- Lower expression of miR-214 was consistently observed in AS patients compared to HC and RA groups.
- Serum miR-214 levels were significantly correlated with the Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score-C-reactive protein.
Conclusions:
- Serum miR-214 shows potential as a noninvasive biomarker for the diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS).
- The expression level of miR-214 is associated with AS disease activity.
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