The expressions of miR-26a and TLR in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with psoriasis vulgaris and their relationships with disease activity

Objective To investigate the expressions of micro RNA-26a (miR-26a) and toll-like receptor (TLR) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with psoriasis vulgaris (PV), and to analyze their relationships with disease activity. Methods Total 200 PV patients treated in our hospital from June 2016 to June 2018 were selected as the study group. According to Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score, the PV patients were divided into 71 cases in mild group, 84 cases in moderate group, 45 cases in severe group, at the same time, 100 healthy people in the physical examination center were selected as the control group. The mRNA levels of TLR2 and TLR4 in PBMCs were detected by fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR); serum C-reactive protein (CRP) level was detected by immunoturbidimetry; Pearson correlation was used to analyze the relationships between the expressions of miR-26a, TLR2 and TLR4 with the activity of PV (PASI score and CRP level). Results There was no significant difference in sex, age, body mass index (BMI) and course of disease among PV patients of different grades in the study group (P>0.05); the mRNA expression levels of miR-26a, TLR2 and TLR4 in PBMCs of the study group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P<0.05); the PASI score, serum CRP level, miR-26a, TLR2 and TLR4 mRNA expression levels in severe PV group were significantly higher than those in mild group and moderate group (P<0.05), and the above indexe in the moderate group were significantly higher than those in mild group (P<0.05); the PASI score and serum CRP level of PV patients were positively correlated with miR-26a, TLR2 and TLR4 mRNA expression levels (P<0.01). Conclusions The mRNA expression levels of miR-26a, TLR2 and TLR4 in PBMCs of PV patients are increased and positively correlated with PASI score and CRP level, which can reflect the activity of PV disease. Key words: Psoriasis; Peripheral blood mononuclear cells; miR-26a; Toll-like receptors