MiR-3168, miR-6125, and miR-4718 as potential predictors of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in patients with head and neck cancer

Background No biomarker is available for identifying cancer patients at risk of developing nephrotoxicity when treated with cisplatin. Methods We performed microRNA (miRNA) sequencing using plasma collected 5 days after cisplatin treatment (D5) from twelve patients with head and neck cancer with and without nephrotoxicity (grade ≥ 2 increased serum creatinine). The most differentially expressed miRNAs between the two groups were selected for quantification at baseline and D5 in a larger cohort of patients. The association between miRNAs and nephrotoxicity was evaluated by calculating the odds ratio (OR) from univariate logistic regression. Receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC) were used to estimate the area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, and specificity. Results MiR-3168 ( p = 1.98 × 10 − 8 ), miR-4718 ( p = 4.24 × 10 − 5 ), and miR-6125 ( p = 6.60 × 10 − 5 ) were the most differentially expressed miRNAs and were further quantified in 43, 48, and 53 patients, respectively. The baseline expression of miR-3168 ( p = 0.0456, OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.00–1.06) and miR-4718 ( p = 0.0388, OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.03–2.46) were associated with an increased risk of nephrotoxicity, whereas miR-6125 showed a trend ( p = 0.0618, OR = 1.73, 95% CI: 0.98–3.29). MiR-4718 showed the highest AUC (0.77, 95% CI: 0.61–0.93) with sensitivity of 66.76 and specificity of 79.49. Conclusions We have provided evidence of baseline plasmatic expression of miR-3168, miR-6125, and miR-4718 as potential predictors of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity.