Roles of miR-1-1 and miR-181c in ventricular septal defects

Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous noncoding RNAs of approximately 22 nucleotides in length that mediate post-transcriptional gene silencing by annealing to sequences in the 3'-untranslated region of target mRNAs.

Methods: In this study, we analyzed 25 candidate miRNAs selected based on microarray data for cardiac tissue from individuals with congenital heart defects (CHDs) and from healthy control tissue.

Results: This study identified specific changes in the miR-1-1 and miR-181c levels in human cardiac samples from individuals with ventricular septal defects (VSDs) relative to the levels in healthy control tissue. Increased levels of GJA1 and SOX9 were associated with the decreased expression of miR-1-1 in VSD patients, and increased miR-181c expression was correlated with downregulated BMPR2 levels. In addition, the results revealed that miR-1-1 and miR-181c directly regulate the expression of these predicted targets.

Conclusions: miR-1-1 and miR-181c are associated with the pathogenesis of VSDs.