Background: This pilot study assesses the potential use of miRNAs in the triage of colposcopy patients with type 3 (nonvisible) cervical transformation zone (TZ). Type 3 TZ is a constitutional finding associated with many problems and controversies in colposcopy patient management. Here, we present miRNAs as a potential biomarker for the detection of CIN3 in these cases.
Materials and methods: Cervical mucosa samples (CMS) were collected from patients presenting with T3 transformation zone during routine workup using the Cytobrush. Depending on the histological and cytological result, as well as the result of the routinely performed HPV PCR, patients were divided into three groups: patients with a high-grade intraepithelial lesion (CIN3) and a positive high-risk HPV test (CIN3 group), patients without an intraepithelial lesion and a positive high-risk HPV test (HPV group), and healthy controls (N = no intraepithelial lesion and negative HPV test). The cervical mucus samples included in the study were tested for their expression levels of distinct miRNAs using qPCR.
Results: All investigated miRNAs were consistently detectable in every sample. The CMSs of histologically graded CIN 3 showed consistently high expression levels of all eight miRNAs, whereas the CMSs from healthy patients (N) show generally lower expression levels. However, CMSs from patients of the HPV group represented a very heterogeneous group.
Conclusions: The data presented here can provide a solid basis for future research into a triage test for patients with a T3 transformation zone on the basis of commonly used clinical equipment.
Keywords: cervical cancer screening; colposcopy; human papilloma virus (HPV).