tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
J Cell Mol Med
. 2022 Sep 8.
doi: 10.1111/jcmm.17492. Online ahead of print.
Expression analysis of miRNA hsa-let7b-5p in naso-oropharyngeal swabs of COVID-19 patients supports its role in regulating ACE2 and DPP4 receptors
Andrea Latini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Chiara Vancheri[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesca Amati[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Elena Morini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sandro Grelli[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Matteucci Claudia[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Petrone Vita[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Vito Luigi Colona[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Michela Murdocca[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Massimo Andreoni[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Vincenzo Malagnino[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Massimiliano Raponi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Dario Cocciadiferro[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Antonio Novelli[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Paola Borgiani[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Giuseppe Novelli[SUP] 1 5 6 7 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the novel coronavirus responsible for worldwide coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We previously observed that Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) are significantly overexpressed in naso-oropharyngeal swabs (NPS) of COVID-19 patients, suggesting their putative functional role in the disease progression. ACE2 and DPP4 overexpression in COVID-19 patients may be associated to epigenetic mechanism, such as miRNA differential expression. We investigated if hsa-let7b-5p, reported to target both ACE2 and DPP4 transcripts, could be involved in the regulation of these genes. We verified that the inhibition and overexpression of hsa-let7b-5p matched to a modulation of both ACE2 and DPP4 levels. Then, we observed a statistically significant downregulation (FC = -1.5; p < 0.05) of hsa-let7b-5p in the same COVID-19 and control samples of our previous study. This is the first study that shows hsa-let7b-5p low expression in naso-oropharyngeal swabs of COVID-19 patients and demonstrates a functional role of this miR in regulating ACE2 and DPP4 levels. These data suggest the involvement of hsa-let7b-5p in the regulation of genes necessary for SARS-CoV-2 infections and its putative role as a therapeutic target for COVID-19.
Keywords: ACE2; COVID-19; DPP4; SARS-CoV-2; hsa-let7b-5p; miRNAs.
. 2022 Sep 8.
doi: 10.1111/jcmm.17492. Online ahead of print.
Expression analysis of miRNA hsa-let7b-5p in naso-oropharyngeal swabs of COVID-19 patients supports its role in regulating ACE2 and DPP4 receptors
Andrea Latini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Chiara Vancheri[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesca Amati[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Elena Morini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sandro Grelli[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Matteucci Claudia[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Petrone Vita[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Vito Luigi Colona[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Michela Murdocca[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Massimo Andreoni[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Vincenzo Malagnino[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Massimiliano Raponi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Dario Cocciadiferro[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Antonio Novelli[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Paola Borgiani[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Giuseppe Novelli[SUP] 1 5 6 7 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 36073344
- DOI: 10.1111/jcmm.17492
Abstract
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the novel coronavirus responsible for worldwide coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We previously observed that Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) are significantly overexpressed in naso-oropharyngeal swabs (NPS) of COVID-19 patients, suggesting their putative functional role in the disease progression. ACE2 and DPP4 overexpression in COVID-19 patients may be associated to epigenetic mechanism, such as miRNA differential expression. We investigated if hsa-let7b-5p, reported to target both ACE2 and DPP4 transcripts, could be involved in the regulation of these genes. We verified that the inhibition and overexpression of hsa-let7b-5p matched to a modulation of both ACE2 and DPP4 levels. Then, we observed a statistically significant downregulation (FC = -1.5; p < 0.05) of hsa-let7b-5p in the same COVID-19 and control samples of our previous study. This is the first study that shows hsa-let7b-5p low expression in naso-oropharyngeal swabs of COVID-19 patients and demonstrates a functional role of this miR in regulating ACE2 and DPP4 levels. These data suggest the involvement of hsa-let7b-5p in the regulation of genes necessary for SARS-CoV-2 infections and its putative role as a therapeutic target for COVID-19.
Keywords: ACE2; COVID-19; DPP4; SARS-CoV-2; hsa-let7b-5p; miRNAs.