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Profiling MicroRNA Markers in Plasma: Looking into Better Approaches and Recommendations

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Theranostics

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 2054))

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Abstract

The revelation of stable microRNA (miRNA) species in body fluids has led to the speculation of disease-related alterations in miRNA expression levels as indicative of disease state making them attractive minimally invasive biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of cancer and other diseases. Although miRNA expression profiling in body fluids holds great promise, working with low amounts of RNA in plasma and serum represents several challenges during purification, relative quantification, normalization, and data analysis. Here, we present an experimental protocol for miRNA profiling in plasma using plasma/serum-specific miRNA purification and RT-qPCR to identify potential miRNA biomarkers. We also discuss the challenges encountered during the miRNA profiling process and provide recommendations for robust purification and relative quantification of miRNAs in patient plasma samples.

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Acknowledgments

This work is supported by the NHMRC CDF to A/Prof Jyotsna Batra and QUT Postgraduate Research Award (QUTPRA) and QUT HDR Tuition Fee Sponsorship to Farhana Matin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI), Translational Research Institute, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Farhana Matin & Jyotsna Batra

Authors
  1. Farhana Matin
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  2. Jyotsna Batra
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jyotsna Batra .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI), Translational Research Institute, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Jyotsna Batra

  2. School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI), Translational Research Institute, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Srilakshmi Srinivasan

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Matin, F., Batra, J. (2019). Profiling MicroRNA Markers in Plasma: Looking into Better Approaches and Recommendations. In: Batra, J., Srinivasan, S. (eds) Theranostics. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2054. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9769-5_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9769-5_5

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  • Publisher Name: Humana, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-9768-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-9769-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

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