Background: It has been demonstrated that aberrant expression of serum microRNAs is potential markers for the prognostic prediction of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, the clinical significance of serum miR-22 remained uncovered. In this study, we aimed to explore the potential prognostic value of serum miR-22 for AML.
Methods: Blood samples were collected from 124 patients with AML and 60 healthy individuals. Serum miR-22 level was detected by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and its potential clinical value was investigated.
Results: Our results showed that serum miR-22 expression was significantly downregulated in AML subjects compared to healthy controls. Serum miR-22 levels were lowest in AML patients with M4/M5 subtypes, and low serum miR-22 expression occurred more frequently in AML patients with higher white blood cell counts or poor cytogenetic risk. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis revealed that serum miR-22 well differentiated AML cases from healthy controls. In addition, serum miR-22 downregulation was closely associated with worse clinical features and shorter survival. Low serum miR-22 expression was confirmed to be an independent predictor for overall survival and relapse-free survival in AML patients. Moreover, the expression level of serum miR-22 was dramatically increased following treatment. In addition, serum miR-22 levels were significantly higher in AML patients achieving complete remission (CR) than those without CR.
Conclusion: Collectively, serum miR-22 might serve as a novel and promising prognostic biomarker for AML.
Keywords: acute myeloid leukemia; complete remission; prognosis; serum miR-22.
© 2020 The Authors. Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.