Background: Although evidence exists on the potential involvement of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in the pathogenesis of several viral infections, the expression levels, and the exact role that hsa_circ_0006459 and hsa_circ_0015962 could play during the Dengue virus (DENV) infection are still unclear. These two circRNAs were identified as possible biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis of DENV disease in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of Dengue-positive patients. This study aimed to evaluate the expression levels of hsa_circ_0006459 and hsa_circ_0015962 in DENV-infected patients and compare them with healthy donors (HD) to provide new insights into the biological significance of these two circRNAs' expression.
Methods: We examined the presence and expression levels of hsa_circ_0006459 and hsa_circ_0015962 in PBMC of DENV-patients throughout a period of 28 days after the DENV diagnosis. HD was used as a control group.
Results: Our results show different expression levels and patterns between hsa_circ_0006459 and hsa_circ_0015962, both in DENV patients and HD.
Conclusion: Possible change in the hsa_circ_0006459 expression during DENV infection was observed, mainly at the time of diagnosis, but without a consistent pattern among patients during follow-up. Further studies are needed to clarify their expression levels and function both in Dengue-positive patients and HD.
Keywords:
Dengue fever; Dengue virus; biomarkers; circRNA;