miRNA Dysregulation in Cardiovascular Diseases: Current Opinion and Future Perspectives

Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), small noncoding RNAs, are post-transcriptional gene regulators that can promote the degradation or decay of coding mRNAs, regulating protein synthesis. Many experimental studies have contributed to clarifying the functions of several miRNAs involved in regulatory processes at the cardiac level, playing a pivotal role in cardiovascular disease (CVD). This review aims to provide an up-to-date overview, with a focus on the past 5 years, of experimental studies on human samples to present a clear background of the latest advances to summarize the current knowledge and future perspectives. SCOPUS and Web of Science were searched using the following keywords: (miRNA or microRNA) AND (cardiovascular diseases); AND (myocardial infarction); AND (heart damage); AND (heart failure), including studies published from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2022. After an accurate evaluation, 59 articles were included in the present systematic review. While it is clear that miRNAs are powerful gene regulators, all the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The need for up-to-date data always justifies the enormous amount of scientific work to increasingly highlight their pathways. Given the importance of CVDs, miRNAs could be important both as diagnostic and therapeutic (theranostic) tools. In this context, the discovery of “TheranoMIRNAs” could be decisive in the near future. The definition of well-setout studies is necessary to provide further evidence in this challenging field.

New Insight into Mechanisms of Cardiovascular Diseases: An Integrative Analysis Approach to Identify TheranoMiRNAs

“…In accordance with a recent systematic review that focused on the miRNAs investigated in human studies in the last 5 years, this in silico study focused on the role of hsa-miR-133a, hsa-miR-21, hsa-miR-499a, hsa-miR-1, and hsa-miR-126 in CVDs. Indeed, out of the 59 selected articles, miR-133a-3p had been investigated 10 times, miR-21 and miR-499a-5p were investigated 8 times each, miR-1 was studied 6 times, and miR-126 was investigated 5 times [ 7 ].…”

“…Moreover, based on the same data, these miRNAs could be used both for the diagnosis and for the treatment of CVDs, opening the idea of defining them with the new term, coined for the first time in the same article: “TheranoMiRNAs” [ 7 ].…”

“…A recent review analyzes the results of human studies over the last five years; according to the results of this review, the most-investigated miRNAs related to myocardial infarction (MI) and heart damage/failure are miR-133a-3p, miR-21, miR-499a-5p, miR-1, and miR-126. In the same paper, the term theranoMiRNA, meaning miRNAs that may be used both for diagnosis and treatment, was defined for the first time [ 7 ]. The identification of cardiac theranoMiRNAs remains a challenge for the scientific community.…”

Crosstalk of NLRP3 inflammasome and noncoding RNAs in cardiomyopathies

“…This molecule serves as a messenger between cells and performs a wide range of tasks. The deregulation of this phenomenon has been associated with a range of cardiovascular disorders 99 . circRNAs are also known to have a substantial impact on cardiovascular disorders.…”

“…The deregulation of this phenomenon has been associated with a range of cardiovascular disorders. 99 circRNAs are also known to have a substantial impact on cardiovascular disorders. As an example, a research investigation successfully found a total of 231 circRNAs that were upregulated and 85 circRNAs that were downregulated in relation to cardiac systolic and diastolic function.…”