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A longitudinal study defines circulating microRNAs as reliable biomarkers for disease prognosis and progression in ALS human patients

ABSTRACT: Background Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease associated with motor neuron degeneration, muscle atrophy and paralysis. To date, multiple panels of biomarkers have been described in ALS patients and murine models. Nevertheless, none of them has sufficient specificity and thus the molecular signature for ALS prognosis and progression remains to be fully elucidated. Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) are highly stable molecules that are recently used as promising biomarkers for many types of human cancer and muscle disorders. Here we overcome this limitation through a longitudinal study, analyzing serum levels of circulating miRNAs in ALS patients during the progression of the pathology. Method We performed next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis and absolute RT quantification of serum samples of 27 ALS patients and 11 healthy control; among them 13 ALS patients were studied every three months till the end of the disease. Results We demonstrated that miR-151a-3p, miR-206 and miR-199a-3p are significantly expressed at the mild, moderate and severe stages of ALS pathology, whereas the expression levels of miR-133a and miR-199a-5p remained low during the whole study and retain diagnostic significance in the moderate and severe stages (miR-133a) and in mild and terminal stages (miR-199a-5p) of the disease. Moreover, we analysed the miRNAs serum levels during the progression of the disease in each patient and we demonstrated that high levels of miR-206, miR-133a, miR-151a-5p, miR-151a-3p can predict a slower clinical decline of patient functionality suggesting that these miRNAs represent good potential prognostic markers for ALS disease. Conclusion This study is the first to perform a longitudinal absolute quantification of circulating miRNAs during ALS disease. We highlighted putative biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis and disease stage identification of ALS patients providing cut-off threshold for most of the miRNAs analyzed. In addition, our results define a molecular signature of ALS phenotypes that could help to define appropriate enrollments of patients in clinical trials.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

PROVIDER: GSE148097 | GEO | 2021/01/03

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder, characterized by cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, cardiomyocyte disarray and fibrosis, which has a prevalence of ~1:200-500 and predisposes individuals to sudden death and heart failure. The mechanisms through which diverse HCM-causing mutations cause cardiac dysfunction remain mostly unknown and their identification may reveal new therapeutic avenues. MicroRNAs have emerged as critical regulators of gene expression and disease phenotype in various pathologies. We explored whether miRNAs could play a role in HCM pathogenesis and offer potential therapeutic targets. Methods and Results: Using high-throughput miRNA expression profiling and qPCR analysis in two distinct mouse models of HCM, we found that miR-199a-3p expression levels are upregulated in mutant mice compared to age- and treatment-matched wild-type mice. We also found that miR-199a-3p expression is enriched in cardiac non-myocytes compared to cardiomyocytes. When we expressed miR-199a-3p mimic in cultured primary cardiac non-myocytes and analyzed the conditioned media by proteomics, we found that several ECM proteins (e.g., TSP2, FBLN3, COL11A1, LYOX) were differentially expressed. We confirmed our proteomics findings by qPCR analysis of selected mRNAs and demonstrated that miR-199a-3p mimic expression in cardiac non-myocytes drives upregulation of ECM genes including Tsp2, Fbln3, Pcoc1, Col1a1 and Col3a1. To examine the role of miR-199a-3p in vivo, we inhibited its function using lock-nucleic acid (LNA)-based inhibitors (antimiR-199a-3p) in an HCM mouse model. Our results revealed that progression of cardiac fibrosis is attenuated when miR-199a-3p function is inhibited in mild-to-moderate HCM. Finally, guided by computational target prediction algorithms, we identified mRNAs Cd151 and Itga3 as direct targets of miR-199a-3p and have shown that miR-199a-3p mimic expression negatively regulates AKT activation in cardiac non-myocytes. Conclusions: Altogether, our results suggest that miR-199a-3p may contribute to cardiac fibrosis in HCM through its actions in cardiac non-myocytes. Thus, inhibition of miR-199a-3p in mild-to-moderate HCM may offer therapeutic benefit in combination with complementary approaches that target the primary defect in cardiac myocytes.

Project description:We tested the hypothesis that a panel of placental mammal-specific miRNAs and their targets play important to establish receptivity to implantation and their dysregulated expression may be a feature in women with early pregnancy loss. Relative expression levels of miR-340-5p, −542-3p, and −671-5p all increased following treatment of Ishikawa cells with progesterone (10 μg/ml) for 24 hrs (p < 0.05). RNA sequencing of these P4-treated cells identified co-ordinate changes to 6,367 transcripts of which 1713 were predicted targets of miR-340-5p, 670 of miR-542-3p, and 618 of miR-671-5p. Quantitative proteomic analysis of Ishikawa cells transfected with mimic or inhibitor (48 hrs: n=3 biological replicates) for each of the P4-regulated miRNAs was carried out to identify targets of these miRNAs. Excluding off target effects, mir-340-5p mimic altered 1,369 proteins while inhibition changed expression of 376 proteins (p < 0.05) of which, 72 were common to both treatments. A total of 280 proteins were identified between predicted (mirDB) and confirmed (in vitro) targets. In total, 171 proteins predicted to be targets by mirDB were altered in vitro by treatment with miR-340-5p mimic or inhibitor and were also altered by treatment of endometrial epithelial cells with P4. In vitro targets of miR-542-3p identified 1,378 proteins altered by mimic while inhibition altered 975 a core of 200 proteins were changed by both. 100 protein targets were predicted and only 46 proteins were P4 regulated. miR-671-mimic altered 1,252 proteins with inhibition changing 492 proteins of which 97 were common to both, 95 were miDB predicted targets and 46 were also P4-regulated. All miRNAs were detected in endometrial biopsies taken from patients during the luteal phase of their cycle, irrespective of prior or future pregnancy outcomes Expression of mir-340-5p showed an overall increase in patients who had previously suffered a miscarriage and had a subsequent miscarriage, as compared to those who had infertility or previous miscarriage and subsequently went on to have a life birth outcome. The regulation of these miRNAs and their protein targets regulate the function of transport and secretion, and adhesion of the endometrial epithelia required for successful implantation in humans. Dysfunction of these miRNAs (and therefore the targets they regulate) may contribute to endometrial-derived recurrent pregnancy loss in women.

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A longitudinal study defines circulating microRNAs as reliable biomarkers for disease prognosis and progression in ALS human patients

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