Altered expression of serum lncRNA CASC2 and miRNA-21-5p in COVID-19 patients.

Infection by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has a high incidence of spread. On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization proclaimed a public health emergency of worldwide concern. More than 6.9 million deaths and more than 768 million confirmed cases had been reported worldwide as of June 18, 2023. This study included 51 patients and 50 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects. The present study aimed to identify the expression levels of lncRNA CASC2 and miRNA-21-5p (also known as miRNA-21) in COVID-19 patients and their relation to the clinicopathological characteristics of the disease. The expression levels of noncoding RNAs were measured by RT-PCR technique. Results detected that CASC2 was significantly downregulated while miRNA-21-5p was significantly upregulated in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy subjects. A significant negative correlation was found between CASC2 and miRNA-21-5p. ROC curve analysis used to distinguish COVID-19 patients from controls. MiRNA-21-p serum expression level had a significant positive association with temperature and PO2 (p = 0.04 for each). These findings indicate that CASC2 and miRNA-21-p might be used as potential diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers in COVID-19.

Expression profile of LncRNA ANRIL, miR-186, miR-181a, and MTMR-3 in patients with preeclampsia.

Preeclampsia (PE) is a leading cause of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Several studies demonstrated the role of lncRNAs and miRNAs in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia; the aim was to detect the expression profiles of serum LncRNA ANRIL, miR-186, miR-181a, and MTMR-3 in patients with preeclampsia. The study included 160 subjects divided into 80 subjects considered as a control group, 80 patients with preeclampsia. We found that there was a significant difference between the preeclampsia and control groups with up-regulation of miR-186 median (IQR) = 4, 29 (1.35-7.73) (P < 0.0001), miR-181a median (IQR) = 2.45 (0.83-6.52) (P = 0.028), and downregulation of lncRNA ANRIL median (IQR) = 0.35(0.28-0.528) (P < 0.0001), MTMR median (IQR) = 0.32(0.155-1.11), (P < 0.0001). ROC curve of lncRNA ANRIL, miR-186, miR-181a, and MTMR-3 in preeclampsia patients showing the roles of these markers in the diagnosis of preeclampsia. In conclusion, serum LncRNA ANRIL, miR-186, miR-181a, and MTMR-3 could be promising biomarkers in the diagnosis of preeclampsia.

Expression profile of serum LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in inflammatory bowel disease.

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. We aimed to investigate, for the first time, the expression profile of serum level of LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in IBD patients and their relations with patient's clinical and biochemical investigations. METHODS: Our study included 210 subjects divided into 70 healthy subjects considered as control group (male and female), 70 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), and 70 patients with Crohn's disease (CD). Blood samples were obtained from all subjects. Expression of LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in serum was detected by Quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR). RESULTS: Our results showed a significant increase in the fold change of LncRNA THRIL in UC patients (Median = 11.11, IQR; 10.21-12.45, P<0.001) and CD patients (Median = 5.87, IQR; 4.57-7.88, P<0.001) compared to controls. Meanwhile there was a significant decrease in the fold change of MiR-125b in UC patients (Median = 0.36, IQR; 0.19-0.61, P<0.001) and CD patients (Median = 0.69, IQR; 0.3-0.83, P<0.001) compared to controls. Furthermore, there was a negative significant correlation between LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in UC patients (r = -0.28, P = 0.016) and in CD patients (r = -0.772, P<0.001). ROC curve analysis was done showing the diagnostic value of these markers as predictors in differentiating between cases of UC, CD, and control. CONCLUSION: Serum LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b could be used as potential biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.

The Potential Therapeutic Effect of Orexin-Treated versus Orexin-Untreated Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy on Insulin Resistance in Type 2 Diabetic Rats.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease characterized by resistance to peripheral insulin actions. Mesenchymal stem cells have been studied for years in T2DM therapy, including adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AD-MSCs). Orexin neuropeptides (A and B) are well-known regulators of appetite and physical activity. The aim of this work was to elucidate the possible therapeutic effect of AD-MSC preconditioning with orexin A (OXA) on insulin resistance in rats. Twenty-eight adult male albino rats were divided into 4 equal groups: a normal control group and 3 diabetic groups (a control T2DM group, diabetic rats treated by an AD-MSCs group, and diabetic rats treated by AD-MSCs preconditioned with OXA). We noticed that the treated groups showed a significant alleviation of insulin resistance parameters as shown in lowering the serum levels of glucose, insulin, total cholesterol, inflammatory markers, and HOMA-IR as compared to the control diabetic group with more significant reduction observed in the OXA-pretreated AD-MSCs-administrated group. More improvement was also noted in the glucose uptake and GLUT-4 gene expression in the skeletal muscle and adipose tissue in the OXA-pretreated AD-MSCs-administrated group compared to the untreated diabetic group. Conclusion. Preconditioning of AD-MSCs with OXA can significantly increase their potential to reduce the insulin resistance in the rat model of T2DM.

The Impact of Cell-free Plasma DNA on Metastatic and Nonmetastatic Prostate Cancer.

Intorductuion: Increased cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is observed in many diseases such as cancer, myocardial infarction, and autoimmune diseases. It has the ability to alter the receptor cell phenotype, triggering events related to malignant transformation. AIMS: Our study aims at assessing the use of cell-free plasma DNA in the diagnosis of metastatic and non-metastatic prostate cancer. METHODS: The study included 180 subjects who were classified into four groups: Group I (GI) included 50 perfect health subjects as the control group, Group II (GII) included 40 patients with prostatitis, group III (GIII) included 40 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and Group IV (GIV) included 50 patients with pre-operative prostate cancer (PC). Evaluation of the plasma level of circulating cell-free DNA by real-time PCR and measurement of total PSA (tPSA) and free to total PSA percent (f/tPSA%) were carried out for all groups. RESULTS: Our study revealed that the level of tPSA was significantly higher in prostate cancer patients, while levels of f/t PSA were found to be significantly lower. The level of cfDNA was significantly higher in prostate cancer patients (399.9±88.6ng/ul) when compared to that of group I (12.1±1.5ng/ul) (p<0.01), group II (14.7±2.4 ng/ul) (p<0.01), and group III (26.6±45.6 ng/ul) (p<0.01) respectively. CONCLUSION: There was a statistically significant difference in yields of cfDNA between metastatic and non-metastatic groups (P=0.03) with a higher level in the metastatic group.

Analysis of the expression profile of long non-coding RNAs MALAT1 and THRIL in children with immune thrombocytopenia.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Pediatric immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is an autoimmune disease; whose etiology is not exactly understood and seems to be highly multifactorial. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are key regulators of different actions, which contribute to the development of many autoimmune diseases. To gain a further understanding, we estimated the relative expression of lncRNAs Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein L (hnRNPL) immune-regulatory lncRNA (THRIL) in pediatric ITP. METHODS: In this case-control study, analysis of the expression profiles of these lncRNAs in blood samples from children with ITP and healthy controls (HCs) using quantitative real-time PCR was done. The association of MALAT1 and THRIL with ITP clinical features and their potential usage as non-invasive circulating biomarkers for ITP diagnosis was also evaluated. The receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed, and an area under the curve was analyzed. RESULTS: Both lncRNAs MALAT1 and THRIL were significantly upregulated in ITP patients in comparison to HCs ( p < .0001 and = .001 respectively). In addition, there was a positive significant correlation between the expression level of both biomarkers among patients (r = 0.745, p < .0001). At cutoff points of 1.17 and 1.27 for lncRNAs MALAT1and THRIL, respectively, both biomarkers had an excellent specificity (100% for both) and fair sensitivity (63.6 and 73.3% for lncRNAs MALAT1and THRIL, respectively). Improvement of biomarkers specificity was obtained by evaluation of the combined expression of both biomarkers. Serum lncRNAs MALAT1 and THRIL could be used as potential biomarkers in differentiating childhood ITP patients and HCs.

Correlation between LincR-Gng2-5'and LincR-Epas1-3'as with the severity of multiple sclerosis in Egyptian patients.

Introduction: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an immune-mediated disorder. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs, LncR, Linc RNA) have role in many autoimmune and inflammatory disorders, including MS. LincR-Gng2-5 AS locus in T helper 1 cell (TH1) and LincR-Epas1-3AS in T helper 2 cell (TH2) cell were located in a genomic region rich in genes code for proteins with immune regulatory function. Our aim was to evaluate the LincR-Gng2-5' and LincR-Epas1-3'AS fold change in blood of MS patients versus healthy controls and correlate it with disease severity, assessed based on Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS).Material and Methods: Sixty MS patients 42 relapsing remitting (RR, RRMS), 18 Secondary progressive (SP, SPMS) and sixty controls (age-matched and sex-matched) were studied. Blood of patients and control group undergone the investigation of LincR-Gng2-5' and LincR-Epas1-3'AS fold change by real-time PCR. Fold change >2 and p < .05 represent significant result.Results: LincR-Gng2-5' was significantly upregulated in MS patients with mean fold change (2.559) and (p = .03). Meanwhile, LincR-Epas1-3'AS levels were significantly downregulated with mean fold change (0.5964) and (p < .004). Patients with SP showed a significantly higher level of LincR-Gng2-5-fold change (3.71 ± 0.7) than that of RR (1.33 ± 0.3). LincR-Epas1-3'AS was markedly reduced among SP (0.43 ± 0.2) than that of RR (0.66 ± 0.1) but with no significant difference. As regards disease severity (EDSS); there was a significant positive correlation with LincR-Gng2-5 and negative correlation with LincR-Epas1-3'AS. LincR- Gng2-5and LincR-Epas1-3'AS, both are dysregulated in MS patient suggesting a role in disease pathogenesis.Conclusion: LincR-Gng2-5 AS and LincR-Epas1-3'AS fold change are correlated to MS severity (EDSS).

Evaluation of serum long noncoding RNA NEAT and MiR-129-5p in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent form of cancer. Various long non coding RNA (lncRNAs) and micro RNA have been confirmed to have a role in the progression of HCC. Our aim was to investigate for the first time the expression profile of serum level of LNC NEAT (nuclear enrich abundant transcript) and MiR-129-5p in HCC patients and their relations with patient's clinical and biochemical investigations rather than previous studies on tissue cell lines. Our study includes 72 subjects divided into 36 as control subjects and 36 patients with HCC. Complete physical and laboratory investigations were done on all subjects. RNAs were extracted from sera of all subjects. RNAs were reversed transcribed into cDNAs using Qiagen, Valenica, CA. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) was performed using Rotor gene Q System (Qiagen). Relative NEAT1 expression level was significantly increased in serum of HCC patients 4.7 (1.31-6.82) (p < .0001). Meanwhile MiR-129-5p relative expression level was significantly decreased in serum of HCC patients 0.17 (0.14-20) (p < .0001). Also there was negative significant correlation between the expression level of LNC NEAT and MiR-129-5p in HCC group (p < .0001). ROC curve analysis revealed that LNC NEAT; AUC = 0.981, p < .0001, cutoff value (1.02), sensitivity 100%, specificity 88.9%. MiR-129-5p; AUC = 0.997, p < .0001, cutoff value (0.43), sensitivity 100%, specificity 97.2%. Serum LNC NEAT and MiR-129-5p could be used as potential biomarkers for HCC cancer diagnosis and prognosis.

Association of MicroRNA-155rs767649 Polymorphism with Susceptibility to Preeclampsia.

Preeclampsia (PE) is a multifactorial disorder. Several studies showed that micro RNAs may play a critical role in PE pathogenesis. We aimed to investigate for the first time the association of mir-155rs767649 polymorphism with PE. Eighty patients with preeclampsia and 80 normal subjects were enrolled in the study. Serum expression levels of mature mir-155were evaluated using real-time PCR, and mir-155 rs767649 (T/A) polymorphism was genotyped using TaqMan SNP genotyping. There was a significant difference between the expression level of mir-155 in cases (5.86 ± 3.11) in comparison with controls (0.58 ± 0.30) (P<0.0001). Also,the minor allele of rs767649 was significantly associated with increased risk of PE [Recessive model: adjusted Odds ratio (OR) = 5.240, 95% confidence interval (CI) = (1.999-13.733),P= 0.001]. There was a significant difference between different genotypes according to expression levels of mir-155 in PE (P<0.0001) with high expression levels in TA genotype (7.10 ± 3.11 ). Mir-155 may play a critical role in PE pathogenesis. The obtained data suggest that a minor allele of rs767649 might be a predisposing factor for PE.

Impact of FokI (rs10735810) and BsmI (rs1544410) on Treatment of Chronic HCV Patients With Genotype 4.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Chronic infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a huge problem both globally and at the level of the individual patient. Our aim is to detect the influence of vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms (BsmI and Fok1) and vitamin D level in HCV patients under treatment with interferon. SUBJECT AND METHODS: Blood samples were taken from 103 HCV patients all of them are genotype 4. They were divided into responders (n = 63) and nonresponders (n = 40) according to their response to interferon treatment. Also 120 subjects with matched age and sex were enrolled as controls. All subjects were subjected to history taking, general examination, liver function tests, hepatitis markers, HCV quantitation by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), DNA extraction from whole blood, PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) for genotyping, and quantitation of vitamin D level by ELISA. RESULTS: There were significant differences between responders and nonresponders in the mean values of vitamin D (P = 0.001) as well as the prevalence of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) BsmI (Bb) (P = 0.02). Meanwhile, no significant differences in Fok1 genotype between responders and nonresponders to interferon therapy of HCV patients in all genotypes [FF, Ff, ff) (P = 0.34, 0.091, and 0.43), respectively. CONCLUSION: BsmI and vitamin D level in chronic liver disease patients are predictors of response to combination therapy of HCV.