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Original Research | Open Access

Expression analysis of microRNAs as candidate biomarkers in Iranian children with autism spectrum disorder

Maryam Rahnamaa,b( ), Hossein Abdul-Tehrania, Mohammad Reza Mohammadic, Mehdi Mirzaied, Pardis Jahandideha,b, Amirhossein Memarib
Department of Medical Biotechnology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 331-14115, Iran
Sports Medicine Research Center, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 14117-34141, Iran
Psychiatry and Psychology Research Center, Roozbeh Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 13337-14914, Iran
Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki P.O. BOX 63 00014, Finland
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Abstract

Background

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder. Despite its biological underpinnings, ASD is yet diagnosed based on behavioral assessments. The importance of early ASD detection is supported by a large body of evidence. Early diagnosis can facilitate more effective interventions, reducing the socioeconomic costs and improving the quality of life of both children with ASD and their families. This study aims to investigate the expression patterns of ASD-related microRNAs (miRNAs) in Iranian children with ASD compared with matched neurotypical controls, to identify candidate miRNA biomarkers.

Method

Validation of ASD-related miRNAs was performed using the qRT-PCR method in plasma samples from 20 ASD and 20 unaffected individuals. Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified based on relative quantification analysis. Then, the diagnostic potential of each candidate miRNA was assessed using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis.

Results

Based on statistical and bioinformatics analyses, eight miRNAs were recommended as candidate biomarkers. Furthermore, differential expression of five of these miRNAs—miR-146a-5p, miR-338-3p, miR-181b-5p, let-7a-5p, and miR-140-3p—was confirmed experimentally by qRT-PCR (p-value < 0.05) based on a t-test. miR-140-3p was not further detected as significant by the Mann–Whitney test. The sensitivity, specificity, and area under the ROC curve were calculated for each validated miRNA and fell in the ranges of 75%–91%, 66.67%–83.33%, and 74%–90%, respectively.

Conclusions

This study revealed a panel of high-confidence differentially expressed miRNAs, which requires further investigation in larger sample sizes and by other validation tests. These findings could be a step forward in the field of ASD biomarker discovery.

Keywords

Autism spectrum disorderBiomarkermiRNAqRT-PCRReceiver operating characteristics curve analysis

Electronic Supplementary Material

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jnrt-12-1-100096_ESM.docx (1.4 MB)

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Journal of Neurorestoratology
Volume 12 Issue 1,
March 2024
Article number: 100096
DOI: 10.1016/j.jnrt.2024.100096
Cite this article:
Rahnama M, Abdul-Tehrani H, Mohammadi MR, et al. Expression analysis of microRNAs as candidate biomarkers in Iranian children with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Neurorestoratology, 2024, 12(1): 100096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnrt.2024.100096

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Received: 19 July 2023
Revised: 24 December 2023
Accepted: 07 January 2024
Published: 26 January 2024
© 2024 The Authors.

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
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