Expression Of MicroRNA - 3146 In Acute Gouty Arthritis

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the expression and the diagnostic value of micro RNA-3146(mi R-3146) in patients with acute gouty arthritis, and its relationships with key inflammatory cytokines.Methods: 31 patients with acute gouty arthritis and 31 hyperuricemia patients were recruited between January 2015 and December 2015 in the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, and 32 healthy individuals were randomly selected as controls.Clinical parameters were collected, and venous bloods were used to measure fasting plasma glucose(FPG), uric acid, liver and renal functions. Plasma mi R-3146 levels were measured using reverse transcription-PCR(RT-PCR), while the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) and interleukine-1 beta(IL-1β) were measured using ELISA. The expressions of mi R-3146 between groups were compared, and the diagnostic value of mi R-3146 in patients with acute gouty arthritis was assessed using ROC curve. The relationships of mi R-3146 with key inflammatory cytokines were also assessed. The impact of colchicine treatment on mi R-3146 levels was further evaluated.Results: The level of plasma miR-3146 in acute gouty arthritis patients was higher than that in hyperuricemia patients(P = 0.002) and healthy controls(P = 0.0002). Plasma mi R-3146 level was not correlated with age, blood pressure, FBG, blood lipids, liver and kidney functions in patients with acute gouty arthritis or hyperuricemia(P > 0.05).Plasma mi R-3146 level was positively correlated with TNF-α levels in acute gouty arthritis patients(Spearman r = 0.55, P = 0.014), and it was also positively correlated with plasma IL-1β levels(Spearman r = 0.53, P = 0.002). ROC curve showed the plasma level of mi R-3146 in acute gouty arthritis had certain diagnostic value, and the area under the curve was 0.725(95% CI: 0.596-0.854). Colchicine treatment could decrease the level of plasma mi R-3146 in acute gouty arthritis patients(P = 0.026). The predicted genes targeted by mi R-3146 from bioinformatics softwares included ADAMTS4,ADAMTS19, SLC16A1, CXCR6 and others.Conclusions: miR-3146 is specifically expressed in the plasma of patients with acute gouty arthritis, and it is positively correlated with the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β, which suggests that it may have an important role in the pathogenesis of gout. Plasma mi R-3146 has certain value in the diagnosis of acute gouty arthritis. Colchicine treatment can reduce the level of mi R-3146 in patients with acute gouty arthritis.