MicroRNA Expression Profiling in Psoriatic Arthritis

• Published in: BioMed research international 2018-01, Vol.2018 (2018), p.1-15
• Main Authors: Dolcino, Marzia, Antonio, Puccetti, Giuseppe, Argentino, Patuzzo, Giuseppe, Tinazzi, E., Fiore, Piera Filomena, Lunardi, C., Pelosi, Andrea, Moretta, Francesca
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Arthritis; Arthritis, Psoriatic - blood; Arthritis, Psoriatic - genetics; Arthritis, Psoriatic - metabolism; Autoimmune diseases; Biomarkers; Biomarkers - blood; Blood cells; Bone growth; Cascades; Cell growth; Cytokines; Deregulation; Development and progression; Disease; DNA microarrays; Epigenetic inheritance; Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid; Female; Gene expression; Gene Expression Profiling; Genes; Humans; Immune response; Immunology; Inflammation; Jurkat Cells; Kinases; Ligands; Male; MAP kinase; Medical research; Medicine, Experimental; MicroRNA; MicroRNAs; MicroRNAs - blood; MicroRNAs - genetics; MicroRNAs - metabolism; Middle Aged; miRNA; Network analysis; Osteogenesis; Pathogenesis; Patients; Psoriasis; Psoriatic arthritis; Regulators; Rheumatoid arthritis; Ribonucleic acid; RNA; Signal Transduction - genetics; Studies; TNF inhibitors; Transcriptome - genetics; Tumor necrosis factor; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Wnt protein
• ISSN: 2314-6133; 2314-6141
• DOI: 10.1155/2018/7305380

Background. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory arthritis, characterized by bone erosions and new bone formation. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are key regulators of the immune responses. Differential expression of miRNAs has been reported in several inflammatory autoimmune diseases; however, their role in PsA is not fully elucidated. We aimed to identify miRNA expression signatures associated with PsA and to investigate their potential implication in the disease pathogenesis. Methods. miRNA microarray was performed in blood cells of PsA patients and healthy controls. miRNA pathway analyses were performed and the global miRNA profiling was combined with transcriptome data in PsA. Deregulation of selected miRNAs was validated by real-time PCR. Results. We identified specific miRNA signatures associated with PsA patients with active disease. These miRNAs target pathways relevant in PsA, such as TNF, MAPK, and WNT signaling cascades. Network analysis revealed several miRNAs regulating highly connected genes within the PsA transcriptome. miR-126-3p was the most downregulated miRNA in active patients. Noteworthy, miR-126 overexpression induced a decreased expression of genes implicated in PsA. Conclusions. This study sheds light on some epigenetic aspects of PsA identifying specific miRNAs, which may represent promising candidates as biomarkers and/or for the design of novel therapeutic strategies in PsA.