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. 2025 Jun;133(6):e70037.
doi: 10.1111/apm.70037.

Serum miR-181a-5p Serves as a Diagnostic Biomarker for Sepsis and Predicts Clinical Outcomes

Huibo Li  1 , Geng Yuan  2 , Gang Luo  1 , Xiangzhe Ni  1 , Shuang Wu  1 , Haiyun Chu  1 , Ying Xiong  1
Affiliations

Serum miR-181a-5p Serves as a Diagnostic Biomarker for Sepsis and Predicts Clinical Outcomes

Huibo Li et al. APMIS. 2025 Jun.

Abstract

MicroRNA (miRNA) shows promise as a biomarker for sepsis diagnosis and prognosis. In the present investigation, we examined the potential of miR-181a-5p as a clinical diagnostic and prognostic indicator for sepsis. This study enrolled 119 sepsis patients and 125 controls. Serum miR-181a-5p levels were assessed via RT-qPCR, revealing a significant upregulation in sepsis patients. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve indicated miR-181a-5p could distinguish sepsis patients with 73.11% sensitivity and 89.60% specificity (AUC = 0.879). Pearson's analysis showed serum miR-181a-5p positively correlated with disease severity scores (APACHE II and SOFA), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 6 (IL-6), malondialdehyde (MDA), and negative with glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that elevated serum miR-181a-5p levels were associated with a worse 28-day prognosis in sepsis patients (log-rank p = 0.022). In summary, this study identifies serum miR-181a-5p as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for sepsis, significantly linked to disease severity, inflammation, and oxidative stress, providing new avenues for sepsis management.

Keywords: biomarker; diagnostic; miR‐181a‐5p; predictive; sepsis.

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