The relative expression of miR-31, miR-29, miR-126, and miR-17 and their mRNA targets in the serum of COVID-19 patients with different grades during hospitalization

Eur J Med Res. 2021 Jul 13;26(1):75. doi: 10.1186/s40001-021-00544-4.

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression of four up/down-regulated inflammatory miRNAs and their mRNA targets in the serum samples of COVID-19 patients with different grades. Also, we investigated the relative expression of these miRNAs and mRNAs during hospitalization.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 5 mL of blood sample were taken from COVID-19 patients with different grades and during hospitalization from several health centers of Yazd, Tehran, and Zahedan province of Iran from December 20, 2020 to March 2, 2021. The relative expression of miRNAs and mRNAs was evaluated by q-PCR.

Results: We found that the relative expression of hsa-miR-31-3p, hsa-miR-29a-3p, and hsa-miR-126-3p was significantly decreased and the relative expression of their mRNA targets (ZMYM5, COL5A3, and CAMSAP1) was significantly increased with the increase of disease grade. Conversely, the relative expression of hsa-miR-17-3p was significantly increased and its mRNA target (DICER1) was significantly decreased with the increase of disease grade. This pattern was exactly seen during hospitalization of COVID-19 patients who did not respond to treatment. In COVID-19 patients who responded to treatment, the expression of selected miRNAs and their mRNA targets returned to the normal level. A negative significant correlation was seen between (1) the expression of hsa-miR-31-3p and ZMYM5, (2) hsa-miR-29a-3p and COL5A3, (3) hsa-miR-126-3p and CAMSAP1, and (4) hsa-miR-17-3p and DICER1 in COVID-19 patients with any grade (P < 0.05) and during hospitalization.

Conclusions: In this study, we gained a more accurate understanding of the expression of up/down-regulated inflammatory miRNAs in the blood of COVID-19 patients. The obtained data may help us in the diagnosis and prognosis of COVID-19.

Trial registration: The ethics committee of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran. (Ethical Code: IR.ZAUMS.REC.1399.316) was registered for this project.

Keywords: COVID-19; Hospitalization; mRNA; miRNAs.

MeSH terms

  • COVID-19 / blood
  • COVID-19 / genetics*
  • COVID-19 / virology
  • Carrier Proteins / genetics
  • Collagen / genetics
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases / genetics
  • Gene Expression Profiling*
  • Hospitalization / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Iran
  • MicroRNAs / genetics*
  • Microtubule-Associated Proteins / genetics
  • Nuclear Proteins / genetics
  • RNA, Messenger / genetics*
  • Ribonuclease III / genetics
  • SARS-CoV-2 / physiology
  • Severity of Illness Index

Substances

  • CAMSAP1 protein, human
  • Carrier Proteins
  • MIRN126 microRNA, human
  • MIRN17 microRNA, human
  • MIRN29a microRNA, human
  • MIRN31 microRNA, human
  • MicroRNAs
  • Microtubule-Associated Proteins
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • RNA, Messenger
  • ZMYM5 protein, human
  • Collagen
  • DICER1 protein, human
  • Ribonuclease III
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases