Screening and bioinformatic analysis of immune clearance-associated microRNAs in patients with chronic hepatitis B

Abstract

Objective To screen and analyze microRNA (miRNA) molecules associated with immune clearance in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Methods Twelve hospitalized CHB patients and 9 healthy individuals from Taizhou People's Hospital during June 2011 and August 2012 were enrolled. miRCURYTM chip was used to identify differential expression patterns of miRNA. The target genes of differentially expressed miRNA molecules were predicted by TargetScan, miRBase and miRanda databases, and their molecular pathways and functions were analyzed with bioinformatic methods. Results Compared with healthy individuals, 52 differentially expressed miRNA molecules were identified in PBMCs of CHB patients, including 33 up-regulated and 19 down-regulated ones. With TargetScan, miRBase and miRanda databases, 354 target genes were predicted in up-regulated miRNA molecules, and 1 935 target genes were predicted in down-regulated miRNA molecules. Gene ontology (GO) and Pathway analysis showed that several molecular pathways might be affected by up or down-regulated miRNA molecules. miRNA-mRNA network analysis showed that some target genes might be regulated by miRNA molecules like hsa-miR-520d-5p, hsa-miR-106a-5p, hsa-miR-30a-5p and hsa-miR-29b-3p, and constituted a complex molecular network. Conclusion There are several miRNA molecules with abnormal expressions in CHB patients, which may be involved in immune clearance through the regulation of target genes and molecular pathways. Key words: Hepatitis B, Chronic; MicroRNAs; Immune clearance; Computational biology