Context: A host of microRNAs have been reported to suppress tumor growth, invasion, and metastasis and play roles in neurodegeneration disorders. Moreover, microRNA changes are found in the peripheral blood, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and brain tissues of central nervous system diseases, including glioma, Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), multiple sclerosis, and depression. Compared with other body fluids, CSF can reflect the brain pathological processes more accurately.
Aims: To understand whether microRNA expression may be misregulated in patients with PD, and further discover potential diagnostic biomarkers and promising therapeutic targets for PD.
Materials and methods: Here, through real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), we compared CSF microRNA from 15 PD patients, 11 AD patients, and 16 controls with other neurologic disorders, such as encephalitis and Guillain-Barre syndrome.
Results: Finally, we identified hsa-miR-626 changes in the CSF of PD patients. The mean expression level of hsa-miR-626 was significantly reduced in the CSF of PD patients compared with AD patients and controls.
Conclusions: Our approach provides a preliminary research for identifying biomarkers in the CSF that could be used for the detection, diagnosis, and monitoring of PD.
Keywords: Biomarker; Parkinson's disease; cerebrospinal fluid; hsa-miR-626.