Abstract

Background: MicroRNAs are present in human plasma and have been reported to be biomarkers for cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the value of circulating microRNA-208b (miR-208b) for the diagnosis and prognosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI).
Methods: A total of 100 AMI patients, 80 unstable angina (UA) patients, and 80 healthy controls (HCs) were consecutively included in this study. Plasma was collected from each participant on admission, and the levels of circulating miR-208b were measured using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The AMI patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were followed up at 6 months post-AMI.
Results: The concentration of miR-208b was higher in the AMI patients than in the other two groups (p < 0.05), and it was positively correlated with the levels of creatine kinase (CK)-MB and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) (p < 0.01). Moreover, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves showed that miR-208b was sensitive like CK-MB and cTnI for the diagnosis of AMI. In addition, the miR-208b concentration in AMI patients with threevessel coronary artery disease (CAD) was higher than that of single- or two-vessel CAD AMI patients (p < 0.05). Also, the miR-208b expression after PCI was significantly lower than on admission (p < 0.01). Furthermore, miR208b expression in AMI patients with left ventricular remodeling/MACEs was higher than in those without after PCI (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: Circulating miR-208b may serve as a sensitive biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of AMI patients.

DOI: 10.7754/Clin.Lab.2016.160632