Involvement of CircRNA Expression Profile in Diabetic Retinopathy and Its Potential Diagnostic Value

Abstract

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs), a class of non-coding and undegradable RNAs, play many pathological functions by acting as miRNA sponges, interacting with RNA-binding proteins, and others. The recent literature indicates that circRNAs possess the advanced superiority for the early screening of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Methods: CircRNA sources of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy controls (n = 4), diabetes mellitus patients (DM) (n = 4), and DR patients (n = 4) were extracted for circular RNA microarray analysis. Enriched biological modules and signaling pathways were analyzed by Gene Ontology Enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis, respectively. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) was performed to validate differentiated levels of several circRNAs (fold change ≥2, p