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Review
. 2021 Sep:71:103569.
doi: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103569. Epub 2021 Sep 11.

Non-coding RNAs in depression: Promising diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers

Yachen Shi  1 , Qingyun Wang  2 , Ruize Song  1 , Yan Kong  3 , Zhijun Zhang  4
Affiliations
Review

Non-coding RNAs in depression: Promising diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers

Yachen Shi et al. EBioMedicine. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), including microRNAs, circular RNAs, and long non-coding RNAs, are important regulators of normal biological processes and their abnormal expression may be involved in the pathogenesis of human diseases including depression. Multiple studies have demonstrated a significantly increased or reduced ncRNAs expression in depressed patients compared with healthy subjects and that antidepressant therapy can alter the aberrant expression of ncRNAs in depressed patients. Although the existing evidence is important, it is also mixed and a comprehensive review to guide an effective clinical translation is lacking. Focused on human research, this review summarizes clinical findings of ncRNAs in depression, including those in brain tissues and peripheral samples. We outlined the characteristics and functions of ncRNAs and highlighted their performance in the diagnosis and treatment of depression. Although their precise roles in depression remain uncertain, ncRNAs have shown potential value as biomarkers for diagnosis and therapy in depressed patients.

Keywords: Biomarker; Circular RNAs; Depression; Long non-coding RNAs; MicroRNAs; Non-coding RNAs.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interests.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig. 1
The division of strength of evidence for the microRNA diagnostic biomarkers in depression I: basic evidence; I+II: moderate evidence; I+II+III: strong evidence; I+II+III+IV: stronger evidence; I+II+III+IV+V: strongest evidence PET, positron emission tomography.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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