LncRNA-GAS5 and β-Catenin as Independent Predictors of Asymptomatic Organ Damage in Nondiabetic Hypertensive Patients

Marwa M Esawy; Amir Abd-Elhameed; Ahmed F Gomaa; Shereen A Baioumy; Moataz A ElKot; Mohammed A Hegab; Ahmed S Alazzouni; Felwa A Thagfan; Rewaida Abdel-Gaber; Mohamed A Dkhil; Marwa A Shabana

doi:10.1021/acsomega.2c07960

LncRNA-GAS5 and β-Catenin as Independent Predictors of Asymptomatic Organ Damage in Nondiabetic Hypertensive Patients

ACS Omega. 2023 Feb 1;8(6):6009-6015. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.2c07960. eCollection 2023 Feb 14.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Clinical Pathology Depart, Faculty of Human Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt.
² Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Human Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt.
³ Microbiology and Immunology Department, Faculty of Human Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt.
⁴ Cardiology Department, Faculty of Human Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt.
⁵ Ophthalmology Department, Faculty of Human Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt.
⁶ Department of Zoology and Entomology, Faculty of Science, Helwan University, Cairo 11795, Egypt.
⁷ Department of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁹ Applied Science Research Center, Applied Science Private University, Amman 11931, Jordan.

Abstract

Hypertension is a serious medical condition that can increase the risk of developing heart, brain, kidney, and other diseases. Many asymptomatic hypertension patients experience asymptomatic organ damage (AOD). The purpose of this study was to determine the roles of LncRNA-GAS5 and β-catenin in predicting AOD in hypertensive nondiabetic patients. This study included 256 subjects, 128 hypertension patients (75 of whom had AOD, and 53 of whom did not) and 128 healthy controls. qRT-PCR was used to assess LncRNA-GAS5, and ELISA was used to assess β-catenin. The LncRNA-GAS5 expression level was decreased in hypertensive patients compared to controls (p-value < 0.001). On the other hand, β-catenin levels showed higher levels in the patients in comparison with controls (p-value < 0.001). A 0.38-fold change in LncRNA-GAS5 expression predicted AOD with 86.6% sensitivity and 88.7% specificity. β-Catenin > 80.5 pg/mL predicted AOD with a sensitivity of 82.6% and specificity of 69.8%. LncRNA-GAS5 expression was a better diagnostic predictor of AOD than β-catenin. According to multivariate logistic regression analysis, decreased LncRNA-GAS5 expression independently increased the risk of AOD (adjusted odds ratio = 0.03 (95% CI: 0.01-0.1) (p < 0.001). Furthermore, elevated β-catenin levels may be an independent risk factor for AOD (adjusted odds ratio = 14.3 (95% confidence interval, 3.3-61.9) (p < 0.001). Collectively, in hypertensive patients, LncRNA GAS5 and β-catenin can distinguish patients with AOD from those who do not have AOD. LncRNA GAS5 and β-catenin can be used as independent predictors of AOD in hypertensive patients.