Plasma microRNA profiling for malaria disease: association with severity and P. falciparum biomass

AbstractSevere malaria (SM) is a major public health problem in malaria-endemic countries. Sequestration of Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) infected erythrocytes in vital organs and the associated inflammation leads to organ dysfunction. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), which are rapidly released from damaged tissues into the host fluids, constitute a promising biomarker for the prognosis of SM. This study applied next-generation sequencing to evaluate the differential expression of miRNAs in SM compared to uncomplicated malaria (UM). Six miRNAs were associated with in vitro Pf cytoadhesion, severity in Mozambican children and Pf biomass. Relative expression of hsa-miR-4497 quantified by TaqMan-RT-qPCR, was higher in SM children plasmas compared to that of UM (p<0.048), and again correlated with Pf biomass (p=0.033). These findings suggest that different physiopathological processes in SM and UM lead to differential expression of miRNAs and pave the way to future studies aiming to assess the prognostic value of these miRNAs in malaria.