Associations between circulating microRNAs and lipid-rich coronary plaques measured with near-infrared spectroscopy
Julie Caroline Sæther1,2, Elisabeth Kleivhaug Vesterbekkmo3,4,5, Maria Dalen Taraldsen3
1Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway. julie.c.sather@ntnu.no.
Abstract:
Lipid-rich coronary atherosclerotic plaques often cause myocardial infarction (MI), and circulating biomarkers that reflect lipid content may predict risk of MI. We investigated the association between circulating microRNAs (miRs) are lipid-rich coronary plaques in 47 statin-treated patients (44 males) with stable coronary artery disease undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. We assessed lipid content in non-culprit coronary artery lesions with near-infrared spectroscopy and selected the 4 mm segment with the highest measured lipid core burden index (maxLCBI4mm). Lipid-rich plaques were predefined as a lesion with maxLCBI4mm ≥ 324.7. We analyzed 177 circulating miRs with quantitative polymerase chain reaction in plasma samples. The associations between miRs and lipid-rich plaques were analyzed with elastic net. miR-133b was the miR most strongly associated with lipid-rich coronary plaques, with an estimated 18% increase in odds of lipid-rich plaques per unit increase in miR-133b. Assessing the uncertainty by bootstrapping, miR-133b was present in 82.6% of the resampled dataset. Inclusion of established cardiovascular risk factors did not attenuate the association. No evidence was found for an association between the other analyzed miRs and lipid-rich coronary plaques. Even though the evidence for an association was modest, miR-133b could be a potential biomarker of vulnerable coronary plaques and risk of future MI. However, the prognostic value and clinical relevance of miR-133b needs to be assessed in larger cohorts.
Insights
MicroRNA-133b may indicate lipid-rich coronary plaques, a marker for myocardial infarction risk. Further studies are needed to confirm its prognostic value in larger patient groups.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Biomarker Discovery
- Molecular Cardiology
Background:
- Lipid-rich coronary atherosclerotic plaques are a primary cause of myocardial infarction (MI).
- Circulating biomarkers reflecting plaque lipid content could predict MI risk.
- Identifying vulnerable plaques is crucial for preventing cardiovascular events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between circulating microRNAs (miRs) and lipid-rich coronary plaques.
- To identify potential circulating biomarkers for vulnerable coronary plaques.
- To explore the predictive value of miRs for myocardial infarction risk.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 177 circulating miRs in plasma samples from 47 patients with stable coronary artery disease.
- Assessment of lipid content in coronary lesions using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to determine lipid core burden index (maxLCBI4mm).
- Statistical analysis using elastic net to identify associations between miRs and lipid-rich plaques (maxLCBI4mm ≥ 324.7).
Main Results:
- MicroRNA-133b (miR-133b) showed the strongest association with lipid-rich coronary plaques.
- An increase in miR-133b was associated with an estimated 18% increase in the odds of having lipid-rich plaques.
- This association remained significant even after accounting for established cardiovascular risk factors.
- No significant associations were found for other analyzed miRs.
Conclusions:
- Circulating miR-133b may serve as a potential biomarker for identifying vulnerable coronary plaques.
- miR-133b could be a novel indicator for predicting the risk of future myocardial infarction.
- Larger cohort studies are required to validate the prognostic value and clinical relevance of miR-133b.
