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Association between hypertension and circulating vascular-related microRNAs

Journal of Human Hypertension volume 32, pages 440–447 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

microRNAs (miRNAs) have a key role in regulating inflammation, vascular health and in turn, cardiovascular disease. Specifically, altered circulating expression of miR-17, miR-21, miR-34a, miR-92a, miR-126, miR-145, miR-146a, and miR-150 has been linked with the pathogenesis and progression of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to determine whether the circulating profile of these vascular-related miRNAs is disrupted with hypertension. Thirty sedentary, middle-aged adults were studied: 15 normotensive (10M/5F; age: 56 ± 1 year; BP: 113/71 ± 2/1 mmHg) and 15 hypertensive (10M/5F; 56 ± 2 year; 140/87 ± 2/2 mmHg). All subjects were non-obese and free of other cardiometabolic disorders. Circulating miRNAs were determined in plasma using standard RT-PCR techniques with miRNA primers of interest. Expression was normalized to exogenous C. elegans miR-39 and reported as relative expression in arbitrary units (AU). Circulating expression of miR-34a (9.18 ± 0.94 vs 5.33 ± 0.91 AU) was higher (~170%; P < 0.01) whereas the expression of miR-21 (1.32 ± 0.25 vs 2.50 ± 0.29 AU), miR-126 (0.85 ± 0.10 vs 1.74 ± 0.27 AU) and miR-146a (1.50 ± 0.20 vs 3.10 ± 0.50 AU) were markedly lower (~50%, ~55%, and ~55% respectively; P < 0.05) in the hypertensive vs normotensive groups. Moreover, circulating levels of miR-34a, miR-21, and miR-126 were significantly related to systolic blood pressure (r = 0.48, r = −0.38; r = −0.48); whereas, miR-146a was significantly related to both systolic (r = −0.58) and diastolic (r = −0.55) blood pressure. There were no significant group differences in circulating miR-17, miR-92a, miR-145, and miR-150. In summary, these results suggest that hypertension, independent of other cardiometabolic risk factors, adversely affects the circulating profile of a subset of vascular-related miRNAs that have been link to CVD risk and development.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all subjects who participated in this study and the University of Colorado Boulder, Clinical and Translational Research Center clinical staff for their assistance.

Funding

This study was supported by the National Institutes of Health awards HL131458, HL135598, and NIH/NCATS UL1 TR001082.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Integrative Vascular Biology Laboratory, Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA

    Jamie G. Hijmans, Kyle J. Diehl, Tyler D. Bammert, Philip J. Kavlich, Grace M. Lincenberg, Jared J. Greiner, Brian L. Stauffer & Christopher A. DeSouza

  2. Department of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Center, University of Colorado, Denver, CO, 80262, USA

    Brian L. Stauffer & Christopher A. DeSouza

  3. Denver Health Medical Center, Denver, CO, 80204, USA

    Brian L. Stauffer

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  1. Jamie G. Hijmans
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Correspondence to Christopher A. DeSouza.

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Hijmans, J.G., Diehl, K.J., Bammert, T.D. et al. Association between hypertension and circulating vascular-related microRNAs. J Hum Hypertens 32, 440–447 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41371-018-0061-2

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