The immunogenic involvement of miRNA-492 in mycoplasma pneumoniae infection in pediatric patients

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the role of miRNA-492 in the progression of mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) infection in pediatric patients.

Methods: Forty-six children admitted to the present study's hospital and diagnosed with mycoplasma pneumonia were recruited as the study group from March 2018 to August 2019, and 40 healthy children were selected as the control group.

Results: The expression levels of miRNA-492, TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-18 in the study group were significantly higher than those in the control group (p < 0.05). There was no significant correlation between miRNA-492 and most of the immune-correlated indicators in the study group, except for IL-6, IL-18 and HMGB1. Meanwhile, overexpression of miRNA-492 increased IL-6 secretion in PMA-activated monocytes (p < 0.01).

Conclusion: The present study's results suggested that miRNA-492 might play a role in the pathogenesis of mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in children by regulating the secretion of immune-inflammatory factors such as IL-6 and IL-18 in the mononuclear macrophages.