Expression and Clinical Significance of Serum miR-497 in Patients with Acute Cerebral Infarction.

Background: There are no effective serum biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis prediction of acute cerebral infarction (ACI). This study is to explore the roles of miR-497 in the prognosis of patients with ACI and the correlation between miR-497 and some cytokines. Methods: MiR-497 expression in 90 serum samples from ACI patients compared to 60 normal control samples subjects was determined by real-time PCR The serum levels of IL-6, IL-22, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha were detected using ELISA kits. Moreover, the GOS was used to evaluate the prognosis of ACI patients on the 30th day after onset. In addition, the diagnostic and prognostic value of miR-497 for ACI was systemically assessed. Results: Serum miR-497 expression was significantly increased in ACI patients (p < 0.05) compared with the healthy control subjects. Additionally, the serum levels of IL-6, IL-22, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha were remarkably up-regulated in ACI patients (p < 0.05, p < 0.01 or p < 0.001). Evaluated via the prognostic indicator GOS, the levels of serum miR-497, IL-6, IL-22, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha were negatively correlated with GOS score, while miR-497 expression was positively correlated with IL-6, IL-22, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha. Conclusions: The level of miR-497 may be used as a biological marker for prognosis of ACI patients. In addition, miR-497 in the serum has the potential to be a prognostic and diagnostic marker of ACI and a therapeutic target.