Abstract
Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) affects a large number of post-surgery patients, especially for the elderly. However, the etiology of this neurocognitive disorder is largely unknown. Even if several studies have reported a small number of miRNAs as the essential modulatory factors in POCD, these findings are still rather limited. In this study, we used two miRNA microarray datasets to perform differential expression analyses of miRNAs in the hippocampus of POCD model mice. We found that nine miRNAs showed significant associations with POCD in both datasets. Among these miRNAs, mmu-miR-190a-3p was the most significant one. By performing weighted gene co-expression network analysis, we found 25 co-expression modules, of which mmu-miR-190a-3p was significantly anti-correlated with the red module. Moreover, in this red module, 314 genes were significantly enriched in four pathways such as axon guidance and calcium signaling pathway, which are well-documented to be associated with psychiatric disorders and brain development. Also, 169 of the 314 genes were highly correlated with mmu-miR-190a-3p, and four genes (Sphkap, Arhgef25, Tiam1, and Ntrk3) had putative binding sites at 3'-UTR of mmu-miR-190a-3p. Based on protein-protein network analysis, we detected that Tiam1 was a central gene regulated by the mmu-miR-190a-3p. Taken together, we conclude that mmu-miR-190a-3p is involved in the etiology of POCD and may serve as a novel predictive indicator for POCD.
Benzodiazepines and postoperative cognitive dysfunction in the elderly. ISPOCD Group. International Study of Postoperative Cognitive Dysfunction
