Research Article - Current Pediatric Research (2023) Volume 27, Issue 3

Report of novel urinary microRNAs in childhood Nephrotic syndrome: A pilot study.

Background: Urinary microRNAs (miRNAS) are found to be as non-invasive biomarkers in many diseases, including Nephrotic Syndrome (NS). NS is a common kidney disorder predominant in children and has also been reported in adults. Approximately 85% to 90% of patients with NS respond to steroid treatment with complete remission of proteinuria are known as Steroid Sensitive Nephrotic Syndrome (SSNS), while 10% to 15% have partial or even no response to steroid therapy termed as Steroid Resistant Nephrotic Syndrome (SRNS). The global urinary miRNA signature in paediatric NS patients and its clinical significance have not been explored. The present study was therefore attempted to analyse the miRNA profile in urinary samples by high-throughput Illumina Sequencing via Synthesis (SBS) technology in control and NS patients.

Methodology: MicroRNA isolation was carried out in urine samples collected from SSNS (10 nos), SRNS (10 nos), and healthy controls (10 nos). Isolated RNA enriched for small RNA High Throughput Sequencing (HTS), and the sequence data were generated using Illumina Hiseq sequencing technology (clever gene biocorp Pvt. Ltd., Bengaluru, India). The expression profile of the differentially expressed miRNAs across the samples is presented in volcano plot and heat map. miRNA sequencing revealed significant increase in 4 and 19 miRNAs in SSNS and SRNS samples respectively, compared to that of normal subjects.

Results: Among the 4 miRNAs of SSNS patients, 3 miRNAs were found to be significantly elevated, while only one was found to be down-regulated as compared to control group. Among the 19 miRNAs of SRNS patients, 8 miRNAs were found to be significantly up-regulated, while 11 were found to be down-regulated when compared to control. The GO analysis showed that the target genes were mainly involved in biological processes, molecular function and cellular components. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis showed pathways in RAS signaling, MAPK signaling, calcium signaling etc. The miRNA sequencing was submitted in the SRA database in NCBI, bio project ID: PRJNA858929 (accession number for submission (SSNS: SAMN29759595, SRNS: SAMN29759596, Control: SAMN29759597).

Conclusion: Urinary miRNAs identified in this study could be promising and non-invasive potential biomarker candidates for diagnosis and prognosis of pediatric NS.

Author(s): Mohanapriya Chinambedu Dhandapani*, Vettriselvi Venkatesan, Sangeetha Geminiganesan, Pricilla Charmine, Yogalakshmi Venkatachalapathy, Praveen Kumar

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