title: Parallel expression profiling of hepatic and serum microRNA-122 associated with clinical features and treatment responses in chronic hepatitis C patients.
abstract: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, non-coding RNAs that regulate a variety of biological processes. Recently, human liver-specific miRNA miR-122 has been reported to facilitate hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication in liver cells. HCV is one of the leading causes of liver diseases worldwide. In Pakistan, the estimated prevalence is up to 10%. Here, we report hepatic and serum miR-122 expression profiling from paired liver and serum samples from treatment-naive chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients and controls. We aimed to elucidate the biomarker potential of serum miR-122 for monitoring disease progression and predicting end treatment response (ETR). Hepatic miR-122 levels were significantly down-regulated in CHC patients. A significant inverse correlation was observed between hepatic and serum miR-122 levels, indicating that serum miR-122 levels reflect HCV-associated disease progression. Both hepatic and serum miR-122 were significantly correlated (P < 0.05) with several clinicopathological features of CHC. Receiver operator curve analysis showed that serum miR-122 had superior discriminatory ability even in patients with normal alanine transaminase levels. Multivariate logistic regression analysis highlighted pre-treatment serum miR-122 levels as independent predictors of ETR. In conclusion, serum miR-122 holds the potential to serve as a promising biomarker of disease progression and ETR in CHC patients.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Azeem Mehmood
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Butt
authors.affiliation: Medicine Unit-I, Department of Medicine, Lahore General Hospital (LGH), Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Arsalan Jamil
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Raja
authors.affiliation: Surgical Unit-I, Department of Surgery, Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Shafiqa
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Siddique
authors.affiliation: Surgical Unit-I, Department of Surgery, Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Jahangir Sarwar
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shahid
authors.affiliation: Medicine Unit-I, Department of Medicine, Lahore General Hospital (LGH), Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Ghias-Un-Nabi
authors.initials: GU
authors.lastname: Tayyab
authors.affiliation: Medicine Unit-I, Department of Medicine, Centre for Liver and Digestive Diseases (CLD), Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Zahid
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Minhas
authors.affiliation: Medicine Unit-I, Department of Medicine, Centre for Liver and Digestive Diseases (CLD), Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Umar
authors.affiliation: Molecular Virology Laboratory, Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB), University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Idrees
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yigang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tong
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000472:pathogenicity; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010154:Pakistan
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C531907:MIRN122 microRNA, human; D035683:MicroRNAs; D000410:Alanine Transaminase