Plasma microRNA signature associated with retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes.

ABSTRACT: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of vision loss and disability. Effective management of DR depends on prompt treatment and would benefit from biomarkers for screening and pre-symptomatic detection of retinopathy in diabetic patients. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression which are released in the bloodstream and may serve as biomarkers. Little is known on circulating miRNAs in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and DR. Here we show that DR is associated with higher circulating miR-25-3p (P?=?0.004) and miR-320b (P?=?0.011) and lower levels of miR-495-3p (P?-20), of cell response to stress (P?=?1.9?×?10^-14), and development of blood vessels (P?=?2.7?×?10^-14). Pending external validation, we anticipate that these miRNAs may serve as putative disease biomarkers and highlight novel molecular targets for improving care of patients with diabetic retinopathy.

SUBMITTER: Santovito D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7892881 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature