aberrant expression of immunerelated micrornas in pediatric patients with asthma

Micrornas (mirnas) have been implicated as regulatory molecules that could play a considerable role in the pathogenesis of different diseases including asthma. this work aims at exploring the role of mir-146a and mir- 106b in the pathogenesis of asthma and their association with asthma severity, ige, and inflammatory cytokines in asthmatic children. thirty asthmatic children and twenty age-matched healthy children aged 4-17 years old were enrolled. expression of plasma mir-146a and mir-106b was measured using quantitative real-time pcr. plasma levels of interleukin-5 (il-5) and interleukin-13 (il-13) were assessed using elisa. lung functions were measured by spirometry. mir-146a and mir-106b were significantly over-expressed in asthmatic children compared to healthy children. a significant positive correlation between total ige and both mir-146a and mir-106b was found while no significant correlation could be detected between these mirnas and asthma severity in asthmatic children. plasma levels of il-5 and il-13 were non-significantly higher in asthmatic children compared to healthy children, and there was no significant correlation between them and both mir-146a and mir-106b expressions in the asthmatic children. the aberrant expression of immune-related mirnas (mir-146a and mir-106b) and inflammatory cytokines (il-5 and il-13) among asthmatic children suggest their probable role in asthma pathogenesis.