MicroRNAs in blood and cerebrospinal fluid as diagnostic biomarkers of multiple sclerosis and to monitor disease progression

• Published in: Neural regeneration research Vol. 15; no. 4; pp. 606 - 619
• Main Authors: Martinez, Bridget, Peplow, Philip
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01.04.2020; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd; Department of Physics and Engineering, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, USA%Department of Anatomy, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand; Department of Medicine, St. Georges University School of Medicine, Grenada; Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, USA; Chinese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine (CARM); Wolters Kluwer - Medknow; Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
• Subjects: 60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES; Adults; Age; Autoimmune diseases; Biomarkers; cell biology; Cerebrospinal fluid; clinically isolated syndrome; clinically isolated syndrome; csf; disease progression; exosomes; humans; microrna; multiple sclerosis; peripheral blood; phenotypes; serum; CSF; Disability; disease progression; exosomes; humans; Inflammation; Magnetic resonance imaging; microRNA; MicroRNAs; Multiple sclerosis; neurology; neurosciences; Patients; Pediatrics; peripheral blood; phenotypes; Review; serum; Spinal cord; phenotypes; exosomes; multiple sclerosis; CSF; microRNA; disease progression; peripheral blood; serum; clinically isolated syndrome; humans
• ISSN: 1673-5374; 1876-7958
• DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.266905

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. It is the main cause of non-traumatic neurological disability in young adults. Multiple sclerosis mostly affects people aged 20-50 years; however, it can occur in young children and much older adults. Factors identified in the distribution of MS include age, gender, genetics, environment, and ethnic background. Multiple sclerosis is usually associated with progressive degrees of disability. The disease involves demyelination of axons of the central nervous system and causes brain and spinal cord neuronal loss and atrophy. Diagnosing multiple sclerosis is based on a patient's medical history including symptoms, physical examination, and various tests such as magnetic resonance imaging, cerebrospinal fluid and blood tests, and electrophysiology. The disease course of multiple sclerosis is not well correlated with the biomarkers presently used in clinical practice. Blood-derived biomarkers that can detect and distinguish the different phenotypes in multiple sclerosis may be advantageous in personalized treatment with disease-modifying drugs and to predict response to treatment. The studies reviewed have shown that the expression levels of a large number of miRNAs in peripheral blood, serum, exosomes isolated from serum, and cerebrospinal fluid are altered in multiple sclerosis and can distinguish the disease phenotypes from each other. Further studies are warranted to independently validate these findings so that individual or pairs of miRNAs in serum or cerebrospinal fluid can be used as potential diagnostic markers for adult and pediatric multiple sclerosis and for monitoring disease progression and response to therapy.