Identification of RRM2 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells as a novel biomarker for the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common autoimmune disease. However, the positive diagnosis value of the current biomarkers is unsatisfactory. Here, we aimed to identify RA-associated susceptibility genes and explore their potential as novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of RA.

METHODS:

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were collected from healthy controls and RA patients. RNA-seq and bioinformatics analyses were performed to identify the hub genes associated with RA. Then, the expression of hub genes was assessed in mRNA expression profiles from GEO datasets. Real time-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) was performed to further confirm the expression of the hub genes using the PBMCs that were collected from RA patients (n=47) and healthy controls (n=40). Finally, we evaluated the diagnostic potential of the candidate mRNAs.

RESULTS:

RNA-seq analyses revealed 178 dysregulated genes measured by changes in mRNAs between the healthy controls and the RA patients. We identified 3 candidate mRNAs, including ASPM, DTL and RRM2, all of which were highly expressed in RA. RRM2 showed a significant higher expression in remissive RA compared with active RA. Significant correlations were observed between DTL and IL-8, TNF-α which were tested in serum by ELISA, between RRM2 and CDAI, DAS-28, tender and swollen joints, respectively. The expression level of RRM2 was significantly higher in RA patients with the Anti-CCP- than with the Anti-CCP+. The AUC (RA vs. OA) value of RRM2 was 0.941 (p<0.0001; sensitivity=0.867; specificity=0.904).

CONCLUSIONS:

RRM2 showed high diagnosis efficiency for RA patients. Therefore, the findings provided a novel candidate biomarker for the diagnosis of RA.

• Authors: Biao Wu, Rong Peng, Yufeng Chen, Junlong Zhong, Shuping Zhong, Bin Wang, Xuegang Li, Ning Jiang, Jie Shang, Dawei Wang, Huading Lu
• Journal: Clinical and experimental rheumatology (Clin Exp Rheumatol) Vol. 40 Issue 11 Pg. 2109-2118 (Nov 2022) ISSN: 0392-856X [Print] Italy
• PMID: 35200126 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Anti-Citrullinated Protein Antibodies
• Biomarkers
• RNA, Messenger

Topics

• Humans
• Leukocytes, Mononuclear (metabolism)
• Anti-Citrullinated Protein Antibodies (metabolism)
• Arthritis, Rheumatoid (diagnosis, genetics)
• Biomarkers
• RNA, Messenger (genetics, metabolism)