MicroRNAs can be measured in blood as proxies for mild traumatic brain injury

Mild TBI is referred to as the signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A majority of TBI sustained in combat are mTBI. Diagnosis of mTBI currently is difficult because of lack of reliable diagnostic technology and apparent symptoms can be similar to effects of other psychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Clinicians today use patients' self-report and expensive brain imaging to detect mTBI. However, no reliable diagnostic biological assays exist for mTBI and, as a result, cases are often missed or misdiagnosed.

MicroRNAs have recently gained a lot of attention for their utility in blood based diagnosis in many diseases. Dr. Radha K. Maheshwari, professor of Pathology at the military's Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, along with his team including Dr. Anuj Sharma, Mr. Raghavendar Chandran, Ms. Erin S Barry, Dr. Manish Bhomia, Dr. Mary Anne Hutchison, Dr. Nagaraja S. Balakathiresan, and Dr. Neil E Grunberg, examined the changes in blood microRNAs in response to various intensities of brain injury resulting in mTBI. These scientists identified a unique and specific group of microRNAs which were detected in blood immediately after the injury to the brain. These results suggest that the microRNAs can be measured in the blood as proxies for mTBI. The microRNA panel identified in this study is unique and does not overlap with blood microRNAs of post-traumatic stress disorder, as reported in a study by Maheshwari and his team published earlier this year in the Journal of Psychiatric Research.

"This important finding is a step forward in identifying objective biomarkers for mTBI that may be further validated to accurately and cost-effectively identify mTBI in service members and civilians with brain injuries. Our current effort is to identify the precise role these microRNAs play in mTBI which may help in development of mTBI therapies" Dr. Maheshwari added.