Expression levels of atherosclerosis-associated miR-143 and miR-145 in the plasma of patients with hyperhomocysteinaemia.
BACKGROUND
An elevated level of homocysteine (Hcy) in the blood is designated hyperhomocysteinaemia (Hhcy) and is regarded as a strong risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis (ATH), although the association remains controversial. Considered to be essential gene expression regulators, micro-RNAs (miRNAs) modulate cardiovascular disease development and thus can be regarded as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets in atherosclerosis. The aim of the current study is to investigate the expression levels of atherosclerosis-associated miR-143 and miR-145 in Hhcy patients and predict the progress of atherosclerosis in Hhcy patients.


METHODS
A total of 100 participants were enrolled and included normal control subjects (NC = 20), hyperhomocysteinaemia alone subjects (Hhcy = 25), hyperhomocysteinaemia and carotid artery atherosclerosis combined subjects (Hhcy + ATH = 30) and patients with standalone carotid artery atherosclerosis (ATH = 25). Plasma Hcy, supplementary biochemical parameters and carotid artery ultrasonography (USG) were measured in all participants. MicroRNA expression levels in the peripheral blood were calculated by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The correlations of miR-143 and miR-145 with Hcy, blood lipid parameters and carotid artery atherosclerotic plaques were evaluated using Pearson's correlation coefficients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed to evaluate the capacities of miR-143 and miR-145 for the detection of Hhcy and atherosclerosis patients.


RESULTS
MiR-143 and miR-145 exhibited trends towards significance with stepwise decreases from the NC to Hhcy groups and then to the Hhcy + ATH and ATH groups. Similar results were observed in the carotid artery plaque group (Hhcy + ATH and ATH grups) compared with the no-plaque group (NC and Hhcy groups). The miR-143 expression level exhibited significant negative correlations with Hcy, total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). The miR-145 expression level exhibited significant negative correlations with Hcy, TC, triglyceride (TG) and LDL-c. MiR-143 and miR-145 exhibited the greatest area under the curves (AUCs) (0.775 and 0.681, respectively) for the detection of every Hhcy patient, including those in the Hhcy and Hhcy + ATH groups, from among all subjects.


CONCLUSION
The results indicated that the levels of atherosclerosis-associated circulating miR-143 and miR-145 are linked to Hhcy. MiR-143 may be used as a potential non-invasive biomarkers of Hhcy and thus may be helpful in predicting the progress of atherosclerosis in Hhcy patients.
['Liu|Kejian|K|', 'Xuekelati|Saiyare|S|', 'Zhang|Yue|Y|', 'Yin|Yin|Y|', 'Li|Yue|Y|', 'Chai|Rui|R|', 'Li|Xinwei|X|', 'Peng|Yi|Y|', 'Wu|Jiangdong|J|', 'Guo|Xiaomei|X|0000-0003-1511-6914']
D000328:Adult D019540:Area Under Curve D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases D016022:Case-Control Studies D000074166:Circulating MicroRNA D005260:Female D005819:Genetic Markers D006710:Homocysteine D006801:Humans D020138:Hyperhomocysteinemia D008055:Lipids D008297:Male D035683:MicroRNAs D008875:Middle Aged D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic D011237:Predictive Value of Tests D012372:ROC Curve D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction D014463:Ultrasonography
miR-143 miR-145 Hyperhomocysteinaemia Atherosclerosis Correlation