Role of microRNAs in Venous Thromboembolism.

Vânia M Morelli,Sigrid K Brækkan,John-Bjarne Hansen

doi:10.3390/ijms21072602

Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs that execute their function by targeted downregulation of gene expressions. There is growing evidence from epidemiological studies and animal models suggesting that the expression level of miRNAs is dysregulated in venous thromboembolism (VTE). In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the role of miRNAs as biomarkers for VTE and provide general insight into research exploring the modulation of miRNA activity in animal models of venous thrombosis. Up to now, published studies have yielded inconsistent results on the role of miRNAs as biomarkers for VTE with most of the reports focused on diagnostic research. The limited statistical power of the individual studies, due to the small sample sizes, may substantially contribute to the poor reproducibility among studies. In animal models, over-expression or inhibition of some miRNAs appear to influence venous thrombus formation and resolution. However, there is an important gap in knowledge on the potential role of miRNAs as therapeutic targets in VTE. Future research involving large cohorts should be designed to clarify the clinical usefulness of miRNAs as biomarkers for VTE, and animal model studies should be pursued to unravel the role of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of VTE and their potential as therapeutic targets.

Highlights

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), a collective term for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), is the third most common cardiovascular disease with an annual incidence of 1–2 per 1000 individuals [1,2]
To reduce the health burden associated with VTE, it is crucial to identify novel biomarkers and unravel molecular pathways involved in the pathogenesis of VTE in order to improve risk stratification and pursue targeted prevention and treatment
MicroRNAs are small endogenous non-coding RNAs consisting of approximately 22 nucleotides that downregulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level through complementary base-pairing with the target messenger RNA [12]

Summary

Introduction

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), a collective term for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), is the third most common cardiovascular disease with an annual incidence of 1–2 per 1000 individuals [1,2]. Studies generally use bioinformatics analyses or previous findings on expression profile of miRNAs in DVT patients to select the miRNAs to be investigated in vivo (Table 3). Over-expression of miR-150, miR-126, let-7e-5p, and miR-21 by viral constructs or inhibition of miR-483-3p resulted in increased homing of endothelial progenitor cells and venous thrombus resolution in experimental DVT [64,65,66,67,68,69].

Results

Conclusion