Micro-RNA Levels May Be Diagnostic Marker, Distinguishing MS from Other Neurological Diseases

Patricia Silva, PhD avatar

by Patricia Silva, PhD |

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Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have higher levels of a micro-RNA called miR-150 in their cerebrospinal fluid, a liquid surrounding and protectingĀ the brain and spinal cord. The study, validating the finding in someĀ 600 people, suggests that miR-150 might be a marker for MS, distinguishing the disease from other neurological conditions.

Micro-RNAs are short stretches of RNA that control the activity of genes. A study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, titledĀ “Circulating miR-150 in CSF is a novel candidate biomarker for multiple sclerosis,”Ā used a three-step process to identify micro-RNAs that might differ between patients with MS and those with other neurological conditions, bothĀ inflammatory and noninflammatory. The reportĀ was published in the journalĀ Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation.

In the first step, the team enrolled 15 patients with clinically isolated syndrome who had experienced an episode of MS-like neurological symptoms but did not yet haveĀ a definitive diagnosis, and 15 MS patients with relapsing disease. As a control group, 13 peopleĀ with noninflammatory ā€” and 14 with inflammatory ā€” neurological diseases were also enrolled.

Researchers found 15 micro-RNAs that differed between patients and controls in the first group, and went on to validate the findings in a second, larger group of 142 individuals. In this group, the team also found that levels of the micro-RNA miR-145 and miR-150 were higher in MS patients compared to peopleĀ with non-inflammatory neurological diseases.

Again scaling up, the researchers observed that, among a new 430-personĀ cohort, only levels of miR-150 were different betweenĀ groups. This particular micro-RNA was inĀ higher concentrations in MS patients than in peopleĀ with both inflammatory and non-inflammatory neurological conditions. Clinically isolated syndrome patients also had elevatedĀ levels compared toĀ those with non-inflammatory neurological disease.

What’s more, those clinically isolated syndrome patients who soon would beĀ diagnosed with MS had higher levels than those whoĀ had not progressed to MS byĀ a second visit, and patients having oligoclonal bands ā€” indicating the presence of antibodies ā€” also had higher miR-150 levels than those without these bands.

The factor did not seem to be linked to relapses, number of brain lesions, or disability scores. But in patients treated with the antibody natalizumab (Tysabri), Ā miR-150 levels were also higherĀ relative toĀ other MS patients.

Homing in on this group, the team noted that 12 months of natalizumab treatment lowered the levels of miR-150 in the cerebrospinal fluid, while increasing levels in blood plasma. Given that scientists believe natalizumab exerts its effect in MS by preventing immune cells fromĀ reaching the brain, researchersĀ concluded that such cells were a likely source of miR-150.Ā This hypothesisĀ was supported by other findings, showing that miR-150 levels were linked to the presence of other immune and inflammatory cells and markers.

“Our findings demonstrate miR-150 as a putative novel biomarker of inflammatory active disease with the potential to be used for early diagnosis of MS,” the research team concluded.