Analysis of plasma miR-208a and miR-370 expression levels for early diagnosis of coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD) requires more accurate diagnostic methods, for which circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) are promising non-invasive biomarkers. miR-208a and miR-370 are two key molecules in cardiac hemostasis and lipid metabolism, respectively. The aim of the present study was to evaluate their potency as diagnostic biomarkers for CAD. Plasma miR-208a and miR-370 were quantitated by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) using a TaqMan(®) MicroRNA Reverse Transcription and PCR kit in 95 CAD patients and 50 non-CAD control subjects. The association between the miRNA levels and CAD was analyzed statistically. The plasma levels of miR-208a (P=0.006) and miR-370 (P=0.003) were significantly higher in the CAD group than in the control group. Using receiver operating characteristic analysis it was shown that the area under the curve (AUC) of miR-208a and miR-370 was 0.819 and 0.745, respectively. The combination of miR-208a and miR-370 exhibited the largest AUC of 0.856. Thus, miR-208a and miR-370 are promising diagnostic biomarkers for discriminating CAD and may facilitate the management of patient care. The combination of the two miRNAs may be more efficacious than either miRNA alone for the diagnosis of CAD.