miR-155 Regulates claudin1 Expression in Humans With Intestinal Mucosa Dysfunction After Brain Injury

Patients with craniocerebral trauma often have intestinal mucosal dysfunction, and the claudin1 protein plays an important role in intestinal mucosal function. Our previous work has shown that the expression of microRNA-155 (miR-155) in the peripheral blood of patients with craniocerebral trauma is decreased. Animal experiments also suggest that the expression of miR-155 is increased in the intestinal mucosa of mice with brain injury and the expression of claudin1 is decreased. We recruited 56 samples (35 patients with traumatic brain injury [TBI] and 21 patients without history of head trauma) to detect the expression of miR-155 on claudin1 regulation by quantitative polymerase chain reaction, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, and so on. We also used the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) to further evaluate the diagnostic value of the 2 biomarkers. From the results, we found that the expression level of miR-155 and claudin1 in the case group was lower than that in the control group. Human miR-155 (Hsa-miR-155) may positively regulate intestinal mucosal function by inhibiting the expression of claudin1, leading to intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction. Combining the ROC curve data, the results further prove that miR-155 and claudin1 might be the new clinical diagnostic markers and treatment targets for the intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction after TBI.