Exosomal miRNA-223-3p as potential biomarkers in patients with cerebral small vessel disease cognitive impairment
Weina Zhao, Wenqiang Sun, Siou Li, Yang Jiao, Zhenqi Wang, Tianjiao Wu, Ping Liu, Lin Tan, Changhao Yin
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cerebrovascular disease is a common clinical illness. Many patients with cerebrovascular disease can be accompanied by cognitive impairment. The exosomal microRNA (miRNA)-223-3p is related to vascular endothelial injury, synaptic function, inflammatory response, and other mechanisms. In this study, we investigated the levels of plasma exosomal miRNA-223-3p in patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD), in order to determine whether it could be used as a more accessible potential biomarker for the early diagnosis and treatment of CSVD. This study aimed to explore whether the development of cognitive impairment can be explained by differentially expressed miRNA-223-3p by detecting the level of miRNA-223-3p, which is abundant in peripheral blood exosomes related to cognitive impairment in CSVD. METHODS: The three groups of participants included 40 patients with CSVD cognitive impairment (CSVDCI), 38 patients with CSVD, and 35 normal controls (NC). The real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to detect the expression level of blood exosomal miRNA-223-3p. In addition, we also studied the relationship between exosomal miRNA-223-3p and blood Hcy and C-reactive protein (CRP). Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of plasma exosomal miRNA-223-3p. RESULTS: The expression of exosomal miRNA-223-3p in CSVD increased, and the expression of miRNA-223-3p increased significantly with the occurrence of cognitive impairment. Exosomal miRNA-223-3p was positively correlated with the expression levels of Hcy and CRP in the blood. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of plasma exosomal miRNA-223-3p is associated with the development of cognitive impairment in patients with CSVD. It may be involved in the pathogenesis of CSVD and cognitive impairment, and can be used as a sensitive predictive biomarker.