A clinical study to evaluate predictive significance of miR-513b-5p for senile cataract using nanoparticle-assisted polymerase chain reaction method

Abstract

In the past few decades, increase in the global population and improvement in the overall life expectancy has been associated with an increase in the prevalence of age-related cataract. Cataracts (CA) refer to the opacification of the eye lens. It is one of the prime reasons contributing to visual impairment and blindness worldwide. The early onset of CA is relatively insidious, which stands as a major obstacle in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Previous studies have reported an aberrant expression of miR-513b-5p in the lens of the eye. Since the eye lens holds a central position in CA, the present study aimed to explore and establish the role of miR-513b-5p in clinical implications of CA using a nanoparticle-assisted polymerase chain reaction (nano-PCR) technology. The study involved two broad groups, 108 elderly CA patients (research group, or RG) and 96 normal physical examinees (control group, or CG). Nano-PCR detection method was used to examine the expression of miR-513b-5p in the two groups. An elevated expression of miR-513b-5p was recorded in RG, which declined after the treatment. ROC curve analysis of the collected data revealed that miR-513b-5p had a favorable diagnostic significance for CA. Post treatment, a positive relevance of miR-513b-5p with inflammatory factors including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin 6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) was verified by correlation analysis. The impact of miR-513b-5p on the prognosis of CA patients further established the high predictive significance of miR-513b-5p with regard to the recurrence of CA. Thus, the results of the study showed that miR-513b-5p was highly expressed in senile CA patients and it displayed a superior diagnostic significance with regard to CA. Post treatment, miR-513b-5p expression was found to be strongly linked to the expression of various inflammatory factors. In addition to these, miR-513b-5p displayed an outstanding predictive significance for the recurrence of CA. All these results highlight the suitability of miR-513b-5p to be used as a promising candidate for the diagnosis and treatment of senile CA in the future.