Differential stability of cell-free circulating microRNAs : implications for their utilization as biomarkers

  • Background: MicroRNAs circulating in the blood, stabilized by complexation with proteins and/or additionally by encapsulation in lipid vesicles, are currently being evaluated as biomarkers. The consequences of their differential association with lipids/vesicles for their stability and use as biomarkers are largely unexplored and are subject of the present study. Methods: The levels of a set of selected microRNAs were determined by quantitative reverse-transcription PCR after extraction from sera or vesicle- and non-vesicle fractions prepared from sera. The stability of these microRNAs after incubation with RNase A or RNase inhibitor, an inhibitor of RNase A family enzymes was studied. Results: The levels of microRNA-1 and microRNA-122, but not those of microRNA-16, microRNA-21 and microRNA-142-3p, declined significantly during a 5-h incubation of the sera. RNase inhibitor prevented the loss of microRNAs in serum as well as the degradation of microRNA-122, a microRNA not expressed in blood cells, in whole blood. Stabilization of microRNA-122 was also achieved by hemolysis. Prolonged incubation of the sera led to enrichment of vesicle-associated relative to non-vesicle-associated microRNAs. Vesicle-associated microRNAs were more resistant to RNase A treatment than the respective microRNAs not associated with vesicles. Conclusions: Serum microRNAs showed differential stability upon prolonged incubation. RNase inhibitor might be useful to robustly preserve the pattern of cell-free circulating microRNAs. In the case of microRNAs not expressed in blood cells this can also be achieved by hemolysis. Vesicle-associated microRNAs appeared to be more stable than those not associated with vesicles, which might be useful to disclose additional biomarker properties of miRNAs.

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Author:Verena KöberleGND, Thomas PleliORCiD, Christian Schmithals, Eduardo Augusto Alonso, Jörg HaupenthalORCiDGND, Halvard-Björn BönigORCiDGND, Jan Franz-Josef Peveling-OberhagORCiDGND, Ricardo M. BiondiORCiDGND, Stefan ZeuzemORCiDGND, Bernd KronenbergerORCiDGND, Oliver WaidmannORCiDGND, Albrecht PiiperORCiD
URN:urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-316828
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0075184
ISSN:1932-6203
Pubmed Id:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24073250
Parent Title (English):PLoS One
Publisher:PLoS
Place of publication:Lawrence, Kan.
Document Type:Article
Language:English
Date of Publication (online):2013/09/20
Date of first Publication:2013/09/20
Publishing Institution:Universitätsbibliothek Johann Christian Senckenberg
Release Date:2013/09/25
Volume:8
Issue:(9):e75184
Page Number:11
Note:
Copyright: © 2013 Köberle et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
HeBIS-PPN:353231886
Institutes:Medizin / Medizin
Dewey Decimal Classification:6 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften / 61 Medizin und Gesundheit / 610 Medizin und Gesundheit
Sammlungen:Universitätspublikationen
Licence (German):License LogoCreative Commons - Namensnennung 3.0