Differential expression and bioinformatic analysis of microRNA in the plasma of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Objective: To construct the differential expression profile of microRNA (miRNA) in plasma of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and explore the possibility of using miRNA as the target for diagnosis and treatment of T2DM.

Methods: Agilent miRNA microarray was used to determine the expression profiles of miRNA in the plasma of patients with T2DM (FC> 2, P< 0.05). The result was verified by real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). Candidate miRNA was analyzed by bioinformatic tools.

Results: In total 122 differentially expressed miRNAs were identified. Among these, 14 were selected by multi-source intersection screening, which included 5 up-regulated genes and 9 down regulated genes. RT-qPCR showed that the expression of hsa-miR-185-5p and hsa-miR-328-5p have significantly increased in T2DM patients (P< 0.05). Bioinformatic analysis suggested that these miRNAs may be involved in the pathogenesis of T2DM through insulin secretion and PI3K-AKT signaling pathway.

Conclusions: Differential expression of hsa-miR-185-5p and hsa-miR-328-5p in the plasma may be closely associated with the pathogenesis of T2DM.