Context: Sensitive, non-invasive biomarkers that facilitate Parkinson's disease (PD) detection and stage assignment are currently unavailable.
Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate the potential of circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) as novel biomarkers for PD.
Materials and methods: Solexa sequencing technology and quantitative real-time PCR were applied to screen and verify altered serum miRNAs in PD patients.
Results: Serum miR-141, miR-214, miR-146b-5p, and miR-193a-3p were decreased significantly in PD patients compared with controls. Furthermore, the 4-miRNA panel enabled the differentiation of HY stage 1 and 2 PD patients from controls.
Discussion and conclusion: The four serum miRNAs may represent novel biomarkers for the early detection of PD.
Keywords: Biomarker; Parkinson’s disease; RT-qPCR; serum microRNA.