Expression of microRNA-378 in children with bronchial asthma

Abstract

Background and aim Many studies have been conducted on microRNAs (miR) to better understand the mechanisms underlying asthma development and to identify possible biomarkers for asthma. The purpose of this study was to determine the expression and role of miR-378 in children with asthma. Patients and methods A total of 90 children with bronchial asthma and 30 healthy controls were included. Medical histories, clinical evaluations, and laboratory investigations including miR-378 by RT-PCR were performed on all children. Results Patients had statistically significantly greater eosinophils count, serum immunoglobulin E levels, and miR-378 than controls, being statistically higher in the bronchial asthma group (1.8 ± 1.6, 289.8 ± 57.5, and 8.16 ± 8.8, respectively) than the control group (0.8 ± 0.1, 17.4 ± 9.7, and 0.96 ± 0.22, respectively), with P value less than 0.001. Moreover, miR-378 expression in patients with asthma was statistically significantly increased with increasing asthma severity (mild was 1.67 ± 0.66, moderate was 6.6 ± 1.56, and severe was 21.49 ± 7.65), with P value less than 0.001. Conclusion In children with bronchial asthma, the expression of miR-378 is high, and it rises with the severity of the disease. Therefore, miR-378 could be a valuable biomarker for bronchial asthma diagnosis.

Keywords

• bronchial asthma
• children
• immunoglobulin e
• microrna-378