Identification of MicroRNAs as Potential Biomarkers in Ovarian Endometriosis

Endometriosis, as a prevalent gynecological disease, is characterized by the presence of endometrial-like tissue outside the uterus, causing infertility and considerable pain and affecting the quality of life of women. The pathogenic mechanism has not been fully elucidated, and there are no effective biomarkers for endometriosis. In our study, microRNA (miRNA) expression profiling of 10 ectopic endometrial plasma from patients with ovarian endometriosis and 10 normal plasma from healthy controls was analyzed using a microarray. As a result, 114 differentially expressed miRNAs were identified. Among them, 14 miRNAs were significantly downregulated in patients with ovarian endometriosis, which matched the microarray results. The diagnostic value of the 14 downregulated miRNAs in ovarian endometriosis was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, and hsa-let-7i-5p showed the highest area under the ROC curve (AUC) with a value of 0.900. The target genes of the 14 miRNAs were predicted by miRWalk2.0, and the genes that were targeted by at least 2 of the 14 miRNAs were analyzed by function enrichment. The target genes were significantly enriched in the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways, such as microRNAs in cancer, bladder cancer, and endocrine resistance pathways, and the Gene Ontology (GO) terms such as nucleobase-containing compound metabolic process, cellular nitrogen compound biosynthetic process, and heterocycle metabolic process. The identified 14 differentially expressed miRNAs could be potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis. Similar content being viewed by others

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Corresponding author Ethics declarations Written informed consent forms were obtained from all participants prior to surgery, and our study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Chinese PLA General Hospital. Conflict of Interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Additional information Highlights •Microarray analysis identified 114 DEmiRNAs in endometriosis patients. •Fourteen miRNAs were validated to be downregulated by RT-qPCR. •The 14 DEmiRNAs may be potential biomarkers for endometriosis. Rights and permissions About this article Cite this article Gu, Cl., Zhang, Z., Fan, Ws. et al. Identification of MicroRNAs as Potential Biomarkers in Ovarian Endometriosis. Reprod. Sci. 27, 1715–1723 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43032-020-00148-z Received: Accepted: Published: Version of record: Issue date: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43032-020-00148-z