Plasma hsa-mir-19b is a potential LevoDopa therapy marker

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder among the elderly, the diagnostic and prognostic of which is based mostly on clinical signs. LevoDopa replacement is the gold standard therapy for PD, as it ameliorates the motor symptoms. However, it does not affect the progression of the disease and its long-term use triggers severe complications. There are no bona fide biomarkers for monitoring the patients' response to LevoDopa and predicting the efficacy of levodopa treatment. Here, we have combined qPCR microRNA array screening with analysis of validated miRs in naïve versus Levodopa-treated PD patients. We have identified plasma miR-19b as a possible biomarker for LevoDopa therapy and validated this result in human differentiated dopaminergic neurons exposed to LevoDopa. In silico analysis suggests that the LevoDopa-induced miR-19b regulates ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis.