Down-regulation of EDN1 gene expression by circulating miR-206 is associated with risk of preeclampsia

To study the correlation between circulating microRNA-206 (miR-206) levels and endothelin-1 (ET-1) levels, and to explore its association with preeclampsia (PE) risk.Reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCT) was used to compare the plasma miR-206 levels in 200 PE patients and 200 healthy controls. The correlation between miR-206 and ET-1 levels in plasma of PE patients was analyzed by Pearson analysis. MiR-206 was transfected into human umbilical vein endothelial cells cells and ET-1 expression was analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.RT-PCR results showed that plasma miR-206 levels in PE patients were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < .01). The results of receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the area under the curve of plasma miR-206 level in the diagnosis of PE was 0.94 (95% confidence interval: 0.92-0.96). Plasma ET-1 levels in PE patients were significantly lower than those in the control group by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (P < .01). The area under the curve of plasma ET-1 level in the diagnosis of PE was 0.92 (95% confidence interval: 0.90-0.95). The level of miR-206 in plasma was negative correlated with ET-1 level (r = -0.37, P < .01). The expression level of ET-1 was significantly decreased in human umbilical vein endothelial cells cells transfected with miR-206.miR-206 can down-regulate the expression of EDN1 gene, which may be related to the increased risk of preeclampsia.