Abstract
Background: It has been suggested that microRNAs (miRNAs; short non-protein-coding RNA molecules that mediate post-transcriptional regulation), including mir-9 and mir-34 families, are important for brain development. Current data suggest that mir-9 and mir-34 may have shared effects across psychiatric disorders. This study aims to explore the role of genetic polymorphisms in the MIR9-2 (rs4916723) and MIR34B/C (rs4938723) genes on the susceptibility of psychiatric disorders in children from the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort. Methods: Psychiatric disorders were assessed in 3585 individuals using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV), criteria through the application of standard semi-structured interviews (using the Development and Well-Being Assessment, DAWBA) at the six-years-of-age follow-up. The outcome was defined as the presence of any mental disorder. We also considered two broad groups of internalizing and externalizing disorders to further investigate the role of these variants in mental health. Results: We observed an association between rs4916723 (MIR9-2) and the presence of any psychiatric disorder (odds ratios (OR) = 0.820; 95% CI = 0.7130–0.944; p = 0.006) and a suggestive effect on internalizing disorders (OR = 0.830; 95% CI = 0.698–0.987; p = 0.035). rs4938723 (MIR34B/C) was not associated with any evaluated outcome. Conclusion: The study suggests that MIR9-2 may have an important role on a broad susceptibility for psychiatric disorders and may be important mainly for internalization problems.
Highlights
Psychiatric disorders with a childhood or adolescence onset are known to persist throughout life [1,2].They are prevalent disorders with moderate to high genetic components, according to classic genetic evidences [3,4,5,6]
This study aims to explore the role of polymorphisms of the genes MIR9-2 and MIR34B/C on the susceptibility of psychiatric disorders among children belonging to the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort study
We investigated the role of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) near the genes MIR9-2 and MIR34B/C on mental health outcomes among children in a population-based Brazilian cohort
Summary
Psychiatric disorders with a childhood or adolescence onset are known to persist throughout life [1,2].They are prevalent disorders with moderate to high genetic components, according to classic genetic evidences [3,4,5,6]. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that microRNAs (miRNAs), defined as short non-protein-coding RNA molecules that mediate post-transcriptional regulation by affecting miRNA stability and translation [10,11], play an important role on epigenetic regulation in brain functions and plasticity [12]. The authors demonstrated that a set of miRNAs is differentially expressed along the brain development, suggesting that these molecules play critical roles in transcriptional networks of the developing human brain and neurodevelopmental disorders. MiRNA-related genetic polymorphisms could potentially affect the maturation, expression, and structure of miRNAs, as well as their base pairing at the target site It may, have a functional role in miRNA-mediated gene regulation, thereby affecting psychiatric diseases [14,15].
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