MicroRNA profiling as a biomarker to improve the management of patients with respiratory diseases proposed

MicroRNA (miRNA) profiles, small ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequences, may serve as innovative biomarkers to aid decision-making in the treatment of patients with respiratory diseases. This topic has been explored through a literature review conducted by researchers from the Translational Research in Respiratory Medicine group at the University of Lleida and the Institute for Biomedical Research of Lleida (IRBLleida), and the Center for Biomedical Research Network - Respiratory Diseases (CIBERES) of the Carlos III Institute of Health. The research has been published in the journal Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy.

'Samples obtained from the respiratory tract represent a valuable source of information because of their direct exposure to the infectious agent and the host response within the respiratory tract. This review explores host and viral miRNA profiles in biological samples derived from the respiratory tract as a source of molecular information to guide patient management, with a specific emphasis on SARS-CoV-2 infection,' explained the first author of the article and researcher at the UdL and IRBLleida, Marta Molinero.

The research consisted of a literature review analysing viral miRNAs encoded by SARS-CoV-2 and host miRNAs as biomarkers in COVID-19 studies.

'Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, much research has been conducted on miRNA profiling in respiratory samples, with the aim of identifying specific biomarkers and extracting molecular information. Although this approach has enormous potential, addressing the aforementioned limitations in future studies is essential to facilitate the integration of miRNA-based biomarkers into clinical practice,' said the last author of the publication and Miguel Servet researcher at IRBLleida, David de Gonzalo.

This group is led by the territorial clinical director of chronic respiratory diseases at the Arnau de Vilanova University Hospital of Lleida (HUAV) and professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the UdL, Ferran Barbé.

This research has been possible thanks to research grants from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PFIS: FI21/00187, PFIS: FI23/00022, Miguel Servet 2020: CP20/00041, COV20/00110), the European Union, the ICREA Academia programme, the Centro de Investigación Biomedica Red - Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES) and the 'estar preparados' grant programme; UNESPA (Madrid, Spain).

Reference article: Molinero M, Perez-Pons M, González J, Barbé F, de Gonzalo-Calvo D. Decoding viral and host microRNA signatures in airway-derived biosamples: Insights for biomarker discovery in viral respiratory infections. Biomed Pharmacother. 2024 Jun 21;177:116984. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116984. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38908203.

Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332224008680