Abstract
Platelets are involved in a variety of diseases, making their adequate functional assessment is essential. However, due to their easily activatable nature this has some methodological pitfalls. Therefore, the availability of stable, easily measurable surrogate markers would be beneficial. In this regard, some evidence suggests that certain microRNAs (miRNAs) circulating in plasma might be useful. We aimed to corroborate their suitability by analyzing plasma samples obtained in a randomized controlled trial, which assessed the effects of periodontal treatment on platelet function. We hypothesized that miRNA levels mirror changes of platelet activation and -function. Both platelet function and miRNA abundance were quantified using state-of-the-art flow cytometry and qPCR methods. The following miRNAs were quantified: 223-3p, 150-5p, 197-3p, 23a-3p, 126-3p, 24-3p, 21-5p, 27b-3p, 33a-5p, 320a, 191-5p, 28-3p, 451a, 29b-3p, and 1-3p. However, periodontal treatment did not affect the abundance of any investigated miRNAs to a relevant extent. Platelet activation and reactivity indices did neither correlate with any tested miRNA at baseline, nor after the treatment period. In addition, there was no evidence that investigated miRNAs were released by platelets, as suggested previously. In conclusion, our data suggest that in patients suffering from periodontal disease the investigated miRNAs are unlikely to be suitable biomarkers for platelet function. Our data aim to raise awareness that previously determined platelet activation dependent circulating miRNAs are not suitable as platelet biomarkers in all cohorts.
Highlights
Platelets play a crucial role in hemostasis (Semple et al, 2011), immune responses (Kral et al, 2016), host defense (Yeaman and Bayer, 2013), and atherogenesis (Lievens and von Hundelshausen, 2011)
Despite clear effects of periodontal treatment on platelet activation, we found no relevant effects on several plasma miRNAs in this study
In line with the above-stated results there were no relevant correlations between miRNA abundance and basal platelet activation measured by surface P-selectin expression
Summary
Platelets play a crucial role in hemostasis (Semple et al, 2011), immune responses (Kral et al, 2016), host defense (Yeaman and Bayer, 2013), and atherogenesis (Lievens and von Hundelshausen, 2011). More stable surrogate markers for platelet activation, e.g., in plasma, could provide an attractive alternative. In this context, circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) could be of interest as some have recently been shown to correlate with platelet activation and function (Nagalla et al, 2011; Sunderland et al, 2017) and might be used as biomarkers (Willeit et al, 2013). MiR-126 was found to affect platelet adhesion, degranulation, and thromboxane A2-generation (Kaudewitz et al, 2016) Given this body of evidence, an association between platelet function and the amount of certain circulating miRNA seems plausible. We analyzed the robustness of miRNAs as markers of platelet function
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