The impact of COVID-19 on microRNA and CD marker expression in AML patients

Abstract

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is an aggressive leukaemia characterised by uncontrolled blast cell proliferation. miRNAs and Clusters of Differentiation (CD) molecules play essential roles in AML progression. This study aims to investigate the effect of COVID-19 on the expression of circulating miRNA and CD molecules in AML. This cross-sectional study recruited 32 AML patients and 20 controls. Blood samples were collected and analysed using molecular cytogenetic, miRNA/mRNA expression, and flow cytometry techniques. The expression of miRNAs varied significantly between patients with AML and control individuals. The co-expression of these miRNAs was higher (P < 0.05), indicating that the presence of one miRNA led to increased expression of other miRNAs. A differential correlation was observed between miRNAs and CD markers. Additionally, miRNA 16, miRNA 21, and miRNA 221 showed significant downregulation (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively) in AML patients with COVID-19 infection compared to those without a disease. Interestingly, this study identified a higher expression level (P < 0.01) of miRNA 137 as a novel biomarker for AML patients. Moreover, the expression of miRNA 137 showed a high correlation (P < 0.05) with most of the CD markers examined in this study and FISH features data. Furthermore, a strong correlation (P < 0.01) was observed between CD markers and miRNA among AML patients with positive and negative COVID-19 infection. These data demonstrated that COVID-19 contributed to increased expression of microRNAs in AML patients. MicroRNA 137 was identified as a novel microRNA that exhibited significant differences between patients and healthy individuals, highlighting its role in AML pathogenesis.