Identification of a genome-wide serum microRNA expression profile as potential noninvasive biomarkers for chronic kidney disease using next-generation sequencing

Abstract

Objective To identify serum microRNAs (miRNAs) as potential non-invasive biomarkers for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods We collected serum samples from healthy controls, CKD stage 1 (CKD1), and stage 5 (CKD5) patients with primary glomerulonephritis (GN), screened differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) using next-generation sequencing (NGS), and confirmed the sequencing data using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Results We identified 20 and 42 DEMs in the CKD1 and CKD5 patients compared with the controls, respectively, and 70 DEMs in the CKD5 compared with the CKD1 patients. The qRT-PCR results showed that miR-483-5p was up-regulated in the CKD1 and CKD5 patients compared with controls (fold change = 2.56 and 18.77, respectively). miR-363-3p was down-regulated in the CKD5 patients compared with the controls and CKD1 patients (fold change = 0.27 and 0.48, respectively). Conclusion We identified a genome-wide serum miRNA expression profile in CKD patients, and serum miR-483-5p and miR-363-3p may act as potential diagnostic biomarkers for CKD.