Obesity Alters the microRNA Expression Profile Related to Metabolic Disorders in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells:...

Obesity is a major global health issue associated with an increased risk of early-onset metabolic disorders and chronic inflammation. Identifying the epigenetic mechanisms that contribute to obesity-related metabolic and inflammatory dysregulation is crucial for developing effective prevention and treatment strategies. This pilot study aimed to investigate the effects of obesity on the expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) related to metabolic disorders in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells from metabolically healthy obese subjects and non-obese controls. Differentially expressed miRNAs in TaqMan human miRNA arrays were quantified using quantitative PCR. To validate the robustness and generalizability of our findings, we performed cross-validation using the publicly available GSE155096 dataset. The expression of miR-145-5p was significantly increased (4.913-fold change) in obese individuals compared to the non-obese control group. Two miRNAs, miR-27b-3p and miR-17-5p, were downregulated 2.207- and 1.448-fold, respectively, approaching significance. A positive correlation was established between miR-145-5p and free triiodothyronine, eosinophils, and vitamin D. A cross-validation analysis confirmed the direction of change for these key miRNAs. The data suggest that miR-145-5p, miR-27b-3p, and miR-17-5p could be implicated in the progression of obesity in causing metabolic abnormalities, clarifying how molecular factors cause the metabolic deregulation associated with obesity.