Circulating MicroRNAs Targeting LIGHT as Diagnostic Biomarkers during Asthma Attack
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Bronchial asthma is one of the most common respiratory diseases. Reversible airflow limitation, persistent airway inflammation and airway hyperresponsiveness, and air remodeling is its main characterization. The morbidity and mortality rates of asthma increase due to air pollution. MicroRNAs are small molecules that regulate gene expression playing a part in inflammatory diseases. The designed current study aims to compare and screen circulating microRNAs targeting LIGHT as diagnostic biomarkers during asthma attack through microRNA microarray and Real Time PCR assay. Methods: Serum from 40 patients with asthma attack and 20 normal subjects was collected to detect circulating microRNAs expression profile through miRNA microarray. It is revealed that the significant differences of microRNAs level between asthmatic patients and normal controls. Target gene predictive analysis of differentially expressing microRNAs was performed to screen the miRNAs targeting LIGHT gene basing on the TargetScan bioinformatics software. Real Time PCR was conducted to further verify the realiability of the miRNA microassay and the screened specific miRNAs targeting LIGHT. Results: Asthmatic patients had a significant upper expression of miR-512-3p, miR-513b-5p, miR-5691 and lower level of miR-107, miR-140-5p, miR-17-5p compared with healthy subjects. The level of miR-140-5p and miR-107 in plasma of asthmatic patients were tightly correlated with their eosinophilic inflammation. The plasma miR-140-5p and miR-107 were needed to perform further investigation to evaluate the role as biomarkers in diagnosis of asthma.
Project description:Breast Cancer is the cancer with most incidence and mortality in women. microRNAs are emerging as novel prognosis/diagnostic tools. Our aim was to identify a serum microRNA signature useful to predict cancer development. We focused on studying the expression levels of 30 microRNAs in the serum of 96 breast cancer patients versus 92 control individuals. Bioinformatic studies provide a microRNA signature, designated as a predictor, based upon the expression levels of 5 microRNAs. Then, we tested the predictor in a group of 60 randomly chosen women. Lastly, a proteomic study unveiled the over-expression and down-regulation of proteins differently expressed in the serum of breast cancer patients versus that of control individuals. Twenty-six microRNAs differentiate cancer tissue from healthy tissue and 16 microRNAs differentiate the serum of cancer patients from that of the control group. The tissue expression of miR-99a-5p, mir-497-5p, miR-362, and miR-1274, and the serum levels of miR-141 correlated with patient survival. Moreover, the predictor consisting of mir-125b-5p, miR-29c-3p, mir-16-5p, miR-1260, and miR-451a was able to differentiate breast cancer patients from controls. The predictor was validated in 20 new cases of breast cancer patients and tested in 60 volunteer women, assigning 11 out of 60 women to the cancer group. An association of low levels of mir-16-5p with a high content of CD44 protein in serum was found. Circulating microRNAs in serum can represent biomarkers for cancer prediction. Their clinical relevance and use of the predictor here described might be of potential importance for breast cancer prediction.
Project description:From a previous microarray study we developed a small chondrogenesis model. We performed qPCR and measured how knockdown of miR-199a-5p or miR-199b-5p could modulate chondrogenesis. Several experiments were used to determine the parameters of this model. We utilised parameter scan and manual sliding to refine the model. Within are two models - an initial model which only comprises of genes which we have data for, and an enhanced model which expands of the initial model to make more predictions - e.g. how miR-140-5p is indirectly regulated by miR-199a-5p and miR-199b-5p.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. Heterozygous loss-of-function point mutations of miRNA genes are associated with several human congenital disorders, but neomorphic (gain-of-new-function) mutations in miRNAs due to nucleotide substitutions have not been reported. Here we describe a neomorphic seed region mutation in the chondrocyte-specific, super-enhancer-associated MIR140 gene encoding microRNA-140 (miR-140) in a novel autosomal dominant human skeletal dysplasia. Mice with the corresponding single nucleotide substitution show skeletal abnormalities similar to those of the patients but distinct from those of miR-140-null mice. This mutant miRNA gene yields abundant mutant miR-140-5p expression without miRNA-processing defects. In chondrocytes, the mutation causes widespread derepression of wild-type miR-140-5p targets and repression of mutant miR-140-5p targets, indicating that the mutation produces both loss-of-function and gain-of-function effects. Furthermore, the mutant miR-140-5p seed competes with the conserved RNA-binding protein Ybx1 for overlapping binding sites. This finding may explain the potent target repression and robust in vivo effect by this mutant miRNA even in the absence of evolutionary selection of miRNA–target RNA interactions, which contributes to the strong regulatory effects of conserved miRNAs. Our study presents the first case of a pathogenic gain-of-function miRNA mutation and provides molecular insight into neomorphic actions of emerging and/or mutant miRNAs.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. Heterozygous loss-of-function point mutations of miRNA genes are associated with several human congenital disorders, but neomorphic (gain-of-new-function) mutations in miRNAs due to nucleotide substitutions have not been reported. Here we describe a neomorphic seed region mutation in the chondrocyte-specific, super-enhancer-associated MIR140 gene encoding microRNA-140 (miR-140) in a novel autosomal dominant human skeletal dysplasia. Mice with the corresponding single nucleotide substitution show skeletal abnormalities similar to those of the patients but distinct from those of miR-140-null mice. This mutant miRNA gene yields abundant mutant miR-140-5p expression without miRNA-processing defects. In chondrocytes, the mutation causes widespread derepression of wild-type miR-140-5p targets and repression of mutant miR-140-5p targets, indicating that the mutation produces both loss-of-function and gain-of-function effects. Furthermore, the mutant miR-140-5p seed competes with the conserved RNA-binding protein Ybx1 for overlapping binding sites. This finding may explain the potent target repression and robust in vivo effect by this mutant miRNA even in the absence of evolutionary selection of miRNA–target RNA interactions, which contributes to the strong regulatory effects of conserved miRNAs. Our study presents the first case of a pathogenic gain-of-function miRNA mutation and provides molecular insight into neomorphic actions of emerging and/or mutant miRNAs.
Project description:MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. Heterozygous loss-of-function point mutations of miRNA genes are associated with several human congenital disorders, but neomorphic (gain-of-new-function) mutations in miRNAs due to nucleotide substitutions have not been reported. Here we describe a neomorphic seed region mutation in the chondrocyte-specific, super-enhancer-associated MIR140 gene encoding microRNA-140 (miR-140) in a novel autosomal dominant human skeletal dysplasia. Mice with the corresponding single nucleotide substitution show skeletal abnormalities similar to those of the patients but distinct from those of miR-140-null mice. This mutant miRNA gene yields abundant mutant miR-140-5p expression without miRNA-processing defects. In chondrocytes, the mutation causes widespread derepression of wild-type miR-140-5p targets and repression of mutant miR-140-5p targets, indicating that the mutation produces both loss-of-function and gain-of-function effects. Furthermore, the mutant miR-140-5p seed competes with the conserved RNA-binding protein Ybx1 for overlapping binding sites. This finding may explain the potent target repression and robust in vivo effect by this mutant miRNA even in the absence of evolutionary selection of miRNA–target RNA interactions, which contributes to the strong regulatory effects of conserved miRNAs. Our study presents the first case of a pathogenic gain-of-function miRNA mutation and provides molecular insight into neomorphic actions of emerging and/or mutant miRNAs.
Project description:Multiple myeloma is a plasma cell malignancy characterized by the abnormal increase of monoclonal immunoglobulins. Despite great treatment advances, there are still patients experiencing migration of tumor cells from the bone marrow and progression of the disease into its aggressive forms including extramedullary disease or plasma cell leukemia. Although the exact molecular mechanisms are not known, several studies have confirmed the involvement of small extracellular vesicles-enriched microRNAs in multiple myeloma progression. Thus, we have performed the expression profiling of these molecules in bone marrow plasma of patients with multiple myeloma, extramedullary disease, and plasma cell leukemia using next-generation sequencing with the aim to identify new molecules involved in the disease pathogenesis. In total, 42 microRNAs were wound to be significantly deregulated among analyzed subgroups. The independent validation by RT-qPCR confirmed the elevated levels of miR-140-3p, miR-584-5p, miR-191-5p, and miR-143-3p in patients with multiple myeloma compared to extramedullary disease and/or plasma cell leukemia. Subsequent statistical analysis proved several significant correlations between clinical characteristics or flow cytometry parameters of patients and microRNAs’ expression. In addition, low levels of miR 140 3p, miR-191-5p, miR-744-5p, and miR-143-3p were associated with worse overall survival. These results indicate that deregulation of microRNAs could contribute to multiple myeloma progression. Nevertheless, the exact mechanisms have yet to be clarified.
Project description:We report the application of RNA sequencing technology for high-throughput profiling of gene expression responses to human rhinovirus infection at 24 hours in air-liquid interface human airway epithelial cell cultures derived from 6 asthmatic and 6 non-asthmatic donors. RNA-seq analysis identified sets of genes associated with asthma specific viral responses. These genes are related to inflammatory pathways, epithelial remodeling and cilium assembly and function, including those described previously (e.g. CCL5, CXCL10 and CX3CL1), and novel ones that were identified for the first time in this study (e.g. CCRL1, CDHR3). We concluded that air liquid interface cultured human airway epithelial cells challenged with live HRV are a useful in vitro model for the study of rhinovirus induced asthma exacerbation, given that our findings are consistent with clinical data sets. Furthermore, our data suggest that abnormal airway epithelial structure and inflammatory signaling are important contributors to viral induced asthma exacerbation. Differentiated air-liquid interface cultured human airway epithelial cell mRNA profiles from 6 asthmatic and 6 non-asthmatic donors after 24 hour treatment with either HRV or vehicle control were generated by deep sequencing, using Illumina HiSeq 2000.
Project description:While microRNAs have extensively been investigated in cancer research, little is known regarding their response to noxious agents in apparently healthy tissues. We analyzed the expression of 484 miRNAs in the lung of rats exposed to environmental cigarette smoke (ECS) for 28 days. ECS downregulated 126 miRNAs (26.0%) at least two-fold and 24 miRNAs more than three-fold. We previously demonstrated that 107 of 4858 genes (2.9%) and 50 of 518 proteins (9.7%) were upregulated by ECS in the same tissue, consistently with the role of microRNAs as negative regulators of gene expression. The most remarkably downregulated microRNAs belonged to the families of let-7, miR-10, miR-26, miR-30, miR-34, miR-99, miR- 122, miR-123, miR-124, miR-125, miR-140, miR-145, miR-146, miR-191, miR-192, miR-219, miR-222, and miR-223, which regulate stress response, apoptosis, proliferation, angiogenesis, and expression of genes. In contrast, miR-294, an inhibitor of transcriptional repressor genes, was upregulated by ECS. There was a strong parallelism in dysregulation of rodent microRNAs and their human homologues, which are often transcribed from genes localized in fragile sites deleted in lung cancer. Five ECS-downregulated microRNAs are known to be affected by single nucleotide polymorphisms. Thus, changes in microRNA expression are an early event following exposure to cigarette smoke. Keywords: microRNAs ⢠gene expression ⢠environmental cigarette smoke SpragueâDawley rats (Harlan Italy, Correzzana, Milan, Italy), weighing 315-320 g, were either exposed to ECS for 4 weeks or kept in filtered air for the same period of time (sham).
Project description:Osteoporosis is a significant health concern, and the role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in cell growth and development regulation is well recognized. High-throughput sequencing technology is widely employed in current research. This study aimed to identify and validate miRNAs associated with osteoporosis. Bone specimens were collected from patients with osteoporosis (n=3) and without osteoporosis (n=3). High-throughput sequencing was utilized to screen for miRNAs, followed by analysis using volcano maps, Wayne maps, gene ontology (GO) analysis, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. The identified miRNAs were further confirmed using qRT-PCR. Sequencing analysis revealed 12 down-regulated and five upregulated miRNAs in osteoporosis. GO and KEGG analysis indicated the association of these miRNAs with bone metabolism. qRT-PCR results demonstrated a significant decrease in miR-140-5p, miR-127-3p, miR-199b-5p, miR-181a-5p, miR-181d-5p, and miR-542-3p (all P<0.05) in osteoporosis compared to controls, while miR-486-3p and miR-486-5p exhibited a significant increase (P<0.05). This study utilized high-throughput sequencing to identify differential miRNA expression in individuals with osteoporosis. Specifically, six miRNAs (miR-140-5p, miR-127-3p, miR-199b-5p, miR-181a-5p, miR-181d-5p, and miR-542) showed decreased expression, whereas two miRNAs (miR-486-3p and miR-486-5p) exhibited increased expression. The differential expression of these miRNAs may serve as predictive indicators, potentially aiding in the prognosis and management of osteoporosis.