title: MicroRNAs in mesenteric lymph and plasma during acute pancreatitis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To isolate microRNAs (miRNAs) from mesenteric lymph (ML) and peripheral blood and identify those that change with experimental acute pancreatitis (AP). To assess identified AP-associated miRNAs in patient plasma to evaluate them as clinical biomarkers of AP.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  miRNAs, small non-protein-coding molecules that regulate gene expression, are present in many biological fluids. They are increasingly interesting as biomarkers of disease and as novel signaling molecules in pathogenesis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Affymetrix miRNA profiling was performed on ML collected from 3 groups of rats with either mild or moderate taurocholate-induced AP and sham controls. Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was used to validate selected miRNAs in matched rat lymph and plasma and then measured in patients with mild or moderate AP and in healthy volunteers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty-five miRNAs were detectable in rat ML, and many were abundant in all animals irrespective of the presence of AP. Seven miRNAs, comprising miR-375, -217, -148a, -216a, -122, -214, and -138, were increased in ML from rats with AP (P < 0.01). Their abundance also altered with disease severity. miRNAs miR-217, -375, -122, and -148a were also increased in matched rat plasma samples by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. In the clinical studies, plasma miR-216a was significantly increased in both mild and moderate AP.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study is the first to demonstrate both the presence of circulating miRNAs in lymph and the alteration of specific miRNAs in AP. Furthermore, these miRNAs alter in rat and human AP plasma and have potential to be explored as novel biomarkers of pancreatitis.
authors: Departments of *Surgery and †Molecular Medicine and Pathology, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand ‡Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Wellington School of Medicine, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand §Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery; and ¶School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
authors: Cherie
authors: C
authors: Blenkiron
authors: Kathryn J
authors: KJ
authors: Askelund
authors: Satyanarayan T
authors: ST
authors: Shanbhag
authors: Mandira
authors: M
authors: Chakraborty
authors: Maxim S
authors: MS
authors: Petrov
authors: Brett
authors: B
authors: Delahunt
authors: John A
authors: JA
authors: Windsor
authors: Anthony R
authors: AR
authors: Phillips
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D008196:Lymph / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008643:Mesentery / Q000378:metabolism; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000097:blood / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009928:Organ Specificity / Q000235:genetics; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D010949:Plasma / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D035683:MicroRNAs