Long noncoding RNA NEAT 1 and its target microRNA-125a in sepsis: Correlation with acute respiratory distress syndrome risk, biochemical indexes, disease severity, and 28-day mortality

Background Sepsis is one of the main contributors to in-hospital deaths. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical roles of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) nuclear-enriched abundant transcript 1 (NEAT1) and microRNA (miR)-125a in sepsis. Methods LncRNA NEAT1 and miR-125a in plasma samples from 102 sepsis patients and 100 healthy controls (HCs) were detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. In sepsis patients, general disease severity was assessed by acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) II score and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score. Meanwhile, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) occurrence and mortality during 28 days were recorded. Results LncRNA NEAT1 was increased, but miR-125a was decreased in sepsis patients compared to HCs, and in ARDS sepsis patients compared to non-ARDS sepsis patients. The receiver's operative characteristic (ROC) curves revealed that higher lncRNA NEAT1 or lower miR-125a had certain predictive value for ARDS risk. Further multivariate logistic regression revealed miR-125a but not lncRNA NEAT1 was correlated with ARDS risk independently in sepsis patients. Additionally, lncRNA NEAT1 was positively, but miR-125a was negatively correlated with APACHE II score and SOFA score in sepsis patients. Moreover, higher lncRNA NEAT1 and lower miR-125a were observed in 28-day deaths compared to 28-day survivors and were correlated with increased accumulating mortality in sepsis patients. Conclusion LncRNA NEAT1 high expression and miR-125a low expression correlate with increased ARDS risk, enhanced disease severity, higher 28-day mortality, and negatively associate with each other in sepsis patients.