Expression of microRNAs in the plasma of patients with acute gouty arthritis and the effects of colchicine and etoricoxib on the differential expression of microRNAs

INTRODUCTION: To determine the microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles in the plasma of acute gouty arthritis (AGA) patients and investigate the effects of colchicine and etoricoxib treatment on the differential expression of miRNAs. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Exiqon miRCURYLNA microRNA Array was used for miRNA expression profiling in AGA. Two of the 21 differentially expressed miRNAs were confirmed using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). A randomized, double-blind, parallel-controlled design was used to divide 160 AGA patients into colchicine and etoricoxib groups. Changes in 2 differentially expressed miRNAs, interleukin-1 (IL-1) β, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and joint pain scores were detected. RESULTS: Compared with normal subjects and asymptomatic hyperuricemia (HUA) patients, plasma of AGA contained 21 differentially expressed miRNAs. qRT-PCR indicated specific downregulation of miR-223-3p and miR-451a in AGA. There were no statistically significant differences in the baseline characteristics between colchicine and etoricoxib groups. Furthermore, no significant difference in joint pain scores after 5- and 10-day treatment were found between groups (p > 0.05). Comparison of differences between pre- and 5-day post-treatment values confirmed that the upregulation of miR-223-3p and downregulation of IL-1β induced by colchicine were more significant than etoricoxib (p < 0.05). However, the latter outperformed the former in the upregulation of miR-451a and downregulation of COX-2 (p < 0.05). After 10-day treatment, the magnitude of miR-223-3p upregulation and IL-1β downregulation in the colchicine group was significantly higher than in the etoricoxib group, while the etoricoxib group had higher expression of miR-451a and lower expression of COX-2 than the colchicine group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In AGA patients, 21 differentially expressed miRNAs were detected in the plasma. Colchicine could upregulate miR-223-3p and downregulate IL-1β in the plasma, while etoricoxib may treat AGA by upregulating miR-451a and downregulating COX-2.