Micro-RNA signature in alcohol dependence: Circulating miRNA-92b and miRNA-382-5p levels as candidate biomarkers: A case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol dependence syndrome (ADS) involves compulsive alcohol use despite negative consequences. Early identification significantly improves outcomes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) that regulate gene expression, show promise as potential biomarkers for this condition through distinctive molecular signatures. AIM: To determine expression of miRNA-92b and miRNA 382-5p in serum of drug naïve patients of ADS in comparison to matched healthy controls to investigate the potential of miRNA 92b and miRNA 382-5p as diagnostic biomarkers for ADS. METHODS: A case-control study examined miRNA expression patterns between ADS patients and matched healthy subjects. Statistical methods were applied to evaluate the resulting data. Through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, optimal threshold values were determined for the two miRNAs under investigation. RESULTS: Findings revealed median expression levels of miRNA-382-5p: 0.001 (Q1: 0.000, Q3: 0.005) in cases and 0.008 (Q1: 0.005, Q3: 0.021) in controls. Median expression levels of miRNA 92b: 0.00 (Q1: 0.00, Q3: 0.01) in cases and 3.68 (Q1: 1.16, Q3: 6.34) in controls. Both being statistically significant. ROC for miRNA-382-5p showed area under the curve (AUC) as 0.86 and for miRNA 92b as 0.99. These results indicate that serum levels of miRNA-92b and miRNA 382-5p, can be used as potential biomarkers for the detection and diagnosis of ADS. CONCLUSION: The association between serum miRNA-92b and miRNA-382 with alcohol use offers a promising avenue for research in alcohol use disorders (AUD). The current findings highlight their potential as biomarkers, with a high statistical significance.