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Objective: to evaluate the expression levels of miRNA (miR-27, miR-101, miR-142, miR-339 and miR-424) and its relationship with clinical and laboratory parameters in lung transplant recipients. Materials and methods. The study included 57 lung recipients aged 10 to 74 years (35 ± 15), including six children (9%) – four boys 10, 12, 13 and 17 years and girls 13 and 14 years old – and 51 adult recipients, including 30 men (62.5%). The control group was made up of 14 healthy individuals that were not significantly different by gender and age. Expression levels of the microRNAs studied in blood plasma were determined via quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Correlations of miRNA expression levels with complete blood count and biochemical blood test indicators were analyzed. Results. Patients with end-stage chronic respiratory failure (potential lung recipients) were found to have significantly higher expression levels of miR-27, miR-101 and miR-339 in plasma than the healthy individuals (p = 0.02, p = 0.03 and p = 0.01, respectively). The expression level of miR-339 correlated with the age of potential lung recipients (p = 0.04). It was a negative correlation (r = –0.46). The expression levels of the other four miRNAs were age independent. The average expression level of miR-424 in lung recipients in the long-term period after lung transplant was higher than in waitlisted patients (p = 0.03). Analysis of the relationship between miRNA expression levels and external respiration function in the long-term post-transplant period showed that miR-142 expression level (r = 0.61; p = 0.04) positively correlates with the Tiffeneau-Pinelli index. This strong correlation, which exceeds 85%, indicates the presence of restrictive lung diseases. A year and more after transplantation, it was found that in the recipients, there were close positive correlations between miR-27, miR-142, miR-424 expression levels and blood leukocyte concentration, as well as between the miR-142 expression level and the sCD40L concentration during this period. Conclusion. A comparative study of the expression level of miRNAs (miR-27, miR-101, miR-142, miR-339 and miR-424) in the blood plasma of patients suffering from end-stage chronic lung diseases of various origin and in lung recipients enables us to conclude that further studies of the miRNA panels are needed in order to assess their effectiveness as potential molecular and genetic markers of post-transplant complications.

MicroRNAs are small RNA molecules stable in blood serum (plasma) samples. Their level of expression is associated with the severity and nature of physiological and pathological processes in the body.Aim: to evaluate the expression levels of five microRNAs (miR-27, miR-101, miR-142, miR-339 and miR-424) in potential lung recipients with end-stage chronic lung diseases of various etiologies.Materials and methods. The study included 16 patients with end-stage chronic lung diseases (potential lung recipients) aged 4 to 74 years (average 36 ± 18). Among them were two children (12.5%) – girls aged 4 and 14 years, and 14 adults aged from 21 to 74 (40 ± 16) years – 6 men (42.9%) and 8 women. The control group consisted of 12 healthy individuals. The main diseases that caused severe respiratory failure were: cystic fibrosis (n = 5), primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH; n = 4), pulmonary fibrosis of various etiologies (idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – 1; pulmonary fibrosis associated with exogenous allergic alveolitis – 1; radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis – 1), lymphangioleiomyomatosis (n = 2), histiocytosis (n = 1) and pulmonary emphysema (n = 1). MicroRNA expression was detected through real-time PCR. The level of microRNA expression in plasma was estimated in accordance with instructions for reagent kits (Qiagen, USA).Results. The levels of miR-27, miR-101 and miR-339 in potential lung recipients were significantly higher than in healthy individuals. The levels differed depending on the etiology of diseases: the levels of miR-27, miR-101, miR-142 and miR-339 were higher in patients with cystic fibrosis than in healthy individuals; in patients with other lung diseases, only miR-101 levels where higher than in healthy individuals. The miR-424 level in healthy individuals did not differ from that in potential lung recipients or in subgroups.Conclusion. Results obtained show the features of a number of microRNA levels (miR-27, miR-101, miR-142, and miR-339) under certain lung diseases and suggest a possibility of a diagnostic value in patients with chronic respiratory failure during pre-transplant examination.