Microarray Profiling of Circular RNA Identifies hsa_circ_0126991 as a Potential Risk Factor for Essential...

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Genetics
• Cardiovascular Medicine

Background:

• Essential hypertension (EH) is a significant public health concern and a leading cause of cardiovascular diseases.
• The underlying molecular mechanisms of EH are not fully understood.
• Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as potential biomarkers for various diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the expression levels of circRNAs in the blood of patients with essential hypertension.
• To assess the diagnostic performance of circRNAs for the early detection of EH.
• To develop a predictive model for EH using circRNAs and microRNAs (miRNAs).

Main Methods:

• A case-control study involving 178 participants.
• Initial screening of circRNA expression using Agilent human circRNA microarray.
• Validation of differentially expressed circRNAs through quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR).
• Development of a prediction model combining circRNAs and miRNAs.

Main Results:

• The expression level of hsa_circ_0126991 was significantly higher in EH patients compared to healthy controls (p < 0.0001).
• A diagnostic model combining hsa_circ_0126991 and miR-10a-5p achieved a sensitivity of 0.708, specificity of 0.764, and an AUC of 0.774 for early EH diagnosis.
• Hyperexpression of hsa_circ_0126991 is correlated with EH risk.

Conclusions:

• The study identifies hsa_circ_0126991 as a potential biomarker for essential hypertension.
• circRNAs, particularly hsa_circ_0126991, offer a novel perspective for the early diagnosis of EH.
• Combining circRNAs with miRNAs can enhance the predictive accuracy for EH.