Mitochondrial miRNAs and fibromyalgia: new biomarker candidates

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), affecting 3–10% of the population, presents a challenge due to its complex symptomatology. Mitochondrial miRNAs (mitomiRs) are highlighted for their significant role in metabolic disorders. This study aimed to assess demographic data in Primer FMS patients and explore potential targets through mitomiR profiling.

In our study, we examined 17 FMS patients and 18 controls, chosen based on specific criteria. Mitochondria were isolated from PBMCs in patient/control blood samples using the MACS method. Mitochondrial purity was verified through RT-qPCR and Western Blot. Following this, we extracted microRNAs and analyzed the levels of 3 mitochondrial miRNAs linked to oxidative stress (mitomiR-145-5p, mitomiR-23a-3p, mitomiR-223-3p) using RT-qPCR.

It was found that pain (P < 0.0001), fatigue (P = 0.0005), sleep quality (P < 0.0001), and depression (P < 0.0001) scores were significantly different in the FMS patient group compared to the control group. But the average BMI values have no difference compared to the control group (p = 0.7473). For the first time, a significant increase in mitomiR-145-5p was observed in the PBMCs of FMS patients compared to the control group (p = 0.0010). There was no significant difference observed in the gene expression levels of mitomiR-223-3p (p = 0.1623) and mitomiR-23a-3p (p = 0.4897).

We demonstrated that mitomiR-145-5p plays a significant role in the progression of FMS pathology. Our study offers new insights, suggesting that mitochondrial miRNAs may have roles in FMS patients, which has not been previously investigated in the literature, thus providing a fresh perspective on the condition.