Serum Levels of miR-143 Predict Survival in Critically Ill Patients

Recent data suggested a potential role of miR-143 as a biomarker for systemic inflammation and infection. However, its role in critical illness and sepsis is only poorly understood.

We determined circulating levels of miR-143 in 218 critically ill patients, of which 135 fulfilled sepsis criteria, and compared them to 76 healthy controls. Results were correlated with clinical records.

In the total cohort of critically ill patients from a medical intensive care unit (ICU), miR-143 serum levels tended to be lower compared to healthy control samples, but this difference did not reach statistical significance. In ICU patients, serum levels of miR-143 were independent of disease etiology, including the presence of sepsis, or severity of disease. Importantly, low miR-143 serum levels were associated with an unfavorable short- and long-term prognosis in ICU patients. Our study identified different optimal cut-off values at which low miR-143 serum levels predicted mortality with a high diagnostic accuracy. In line with this, concentrations of circulating miR-143 correlated with markers of organ failure such as creatinine, bilirubin, or lactate in our cohort of critically ill patients.

Low miR-143 serum levels are indicative for an unfavorable short- and long-term prognosis in critically ill patients admitted to a medical ICU. Our data suggest a previously unrecognized role for miR-143 measurements as a novel prognostic marker in critically ill patients.