Alterations in serum exosomal miR-1207-5p levels reflect severity and progression risk in type 2 diabetic kidney disease.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a frequent microvascular complication of diabetes and the predominant cause of end-stage renal disease worldwide. Dysregulated microRNA (miRNA) expression contributes to DKD pathogenesis. This study aimed to determine the clinical significance of serum exosomal miR-1207-5p expression in type-2 DKD. METHODS: Serum exosomes were isolated from 51 DKD patients stratified into low-, medium-, high-, and extremely high-risk groups and 11 control individuals. Exsosomal miR-1207-5p expression was determined by real-time-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), and its relationship with the patient's clinical records was explored. Bioinformatics analyses were performed to determine miR-1207-5p target genes using tools available online. Datasets obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were used to validate the experimental results. RESULTS: miR-1207-5p was downregulated in the DKD patients compared to the controls, and this downregulation was the most prominent in the high-risk group. Correlation analysis revealed inverse associations between miR-1207-5p and parameters of renal dysfunction. Multivariate logistic regression indicated that miR-1207-5p may confer protection against DKD progression. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis demonstrated the ability of exosomal miR-1207-5p to distinguish low- versus high-/extremely high-risk DKD. Bioinformatics approaches identified a miR-1207-5p-mediated competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network with connections to pathogenic pathways. CONCLUSION: Serum exosomal miR-1207-5p holds promise as a noninvasive biomarker for assessing DKD progression risk and improving the diagnosis and prognosis of affected patients.