Lymphocyte to monocyte ratio predicts survival and is epigenetically linked to miR-222-3p and miR-26b-5p in diffuse large B cell lymphoma

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 4899
• Main Authors: Metwally, Ayman Mohamed, Kasem, Ameera Abdel Hamed Mahmoud, Youssif, Magda Ismail, Hassan, Safia Mohammed, Abdel Wahab, Abdel Hady A., Refaat, Lobna Ahmed
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 25-03-2023; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/208; 631/337; 631/67; 692/53; B-cell lymphoma; Biopsy; Bone marrow; Hemoglobin; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Leukocytes (neutrophilic); Lymphocytes; Lymphocytes - metabolism; Lymphocytes B; Lymphoma; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse - pathology; MicroRNAs - genetics; MicroRNAs - metabolism; Monocytes; Monocytes - metabolism; multidisciplinary; Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Survival
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31700-x

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. 10–20% of the patients present with bone marrow (BM) involvement which predicts a worse survival. This study aimed to determine the prognostic significance of serum miR-222-3p, miR-26b-5p, EBV-miR-BHRF1-2-5p, and EBV-miR-BHRF1-2-3p and correlate their levels to clinical and haematological markers in DLBCL with special emphasis on the lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR) and neutrophil-monocyte ratio. We also studied the role of BM BMI1 and PIM2 proteins in predicting BM infiltration. Serum miRNAs were studied on 40 DLBCL and 18 normal individuals using qRT-PCR. BMI1 and PIM2 proteins were studied on BM biopsies by immunohistochemistry. The results were correlated with clinical and follow-up data. All the studied miRNAs were dysregulated in DLBCL serum samples. BMI1 and PIM2 were expressed in 67% and 77.5% of BM samples, respectively. LMR was significantly associated with disease-free survival (DFS) (
P
 = 0.022), miR-222-3P (
P
 = 0.043), and miR-26b-5p (
P
 = 0.043). EBV-miR-BHRF1-2-3p was significantly correlated to haemoglobin level (
P
 = 0.027). MiR-222-3p, miR-26b-5p, and EBV-miR-BHRF1-2-5p expressions were significantly correlated to each other (
P
 = 0.001). There was no significant correlation between the studied markers and follow-up data. LMR is a simple method for predicting survival in DLBCL. MiR-222-3p and miR-26b-5p may be implicated in an immunological mechanism affecting patients’ immunity and accordingly influence LMR. The correlation between miR-222-3p, miR-26b-5p, and EBV-miR-BHRF1-2-5p may indicate a common mechanism among the 3 miRNAs that may explain DLBCL pathogenesis.