ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVES</b>To investigate if there is altered microRNAs (miRNAs) expression in aortic dissection (Debakey Type A) and normal aorta tissue.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Total RNA was exacted from aorta of 5 patients with aortic dissection (AD) and four patients without aortic diseases (NA). miRNAs of the aortic tissues were analyzed by miRNA microarray. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed to verify the expression of miRNAs in larger sample size (AD = 11 and NA = 9).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>hsa-miR-146b-5p_st, hsa-miR-19a_st and hsa-miR-505_st were significantly upregulated while hsa-miR-1268_st and hsa-miR-939_st were significantly downregulated [fold change > 2, q-value (%) ≤ 5] in AD group compared with NA group. RT-PCR verified hsa-miR-146b-5p_st miRNAs change in AD group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Altered miRNAs expression might play an essential role in the pathogenesis of aortic dissection formation and hsa-miR-146b-5p_st might serve as a new diagnosis biomarker of aortic dissection.</p>