Investigation of miR-92a-3p as a Potential Biomarker in Childhood Epileptic Encephalopathy Patients

Epileptic encephalopathy (EE) consists of frequent seizures and/or major interictal paroxysmal activity, in which cognitive, sensory and/or motor functions are impaired because of epileptic activity. microRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to be particularly abundant in the brain, where they have been found to play a role in neuronal development from early neurogenesis and cell-fate specification to neuronal differentiation. This study aimed to explore expression levels of miR-92a-3p in children with epileptic encephalopathy to assess its potential as a biomarker, given its hypothesized involvement in disease pathogenesis. This study included blood serum samples from 53 individuals, divided into two groups: a childhood epileptic encephalopathy (CEE) patients’ group (n = 22) and a healthy control group (n = 31). The expression levels of hsa-miR-92a-3p were determined using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). hsa-miR-92a-3p target genes found in membrane transporter/ion channel signalling related pathways were detected using KEGG pathway, Reactome and Gene ontology tools. Target genes and protein-protein interactions were evaluated using GeneMANIA. Compared to the healthy control group, 1.41-fold down-regulation was detected in hsa-miR-92a-3p expression levels in CEE patients. No statistically significant difference was found between the groups (hsa-miR-92a-3p-Fold change = –1.41, hsa-miR-92a-3p-p value = 0.941972). Moreover, target gene analyses were performed KCJN5, GRIA2, KCNMA1, TRPM3, SLC26A3, SLC6A19, SLC15A2, SLC13A3 and SLC9A4 genes were found. miR-92a-3p may have a potential role in CEE patients. To the best of our knowledge, this research represents the initial demonstration of miR-92a-3p expression and target genes in childhood epileptic encephalopathy.