Analysis of and Expression in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells of Dengue-Infected Patients and Healthy Donors.

Background: Although evidence exists on the potential involvement of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in the pathogenesis of several viral infections, the expression levels, and the exact role that and could play during the Dengue virus (DENV) infection are still unclear. These two circRNAs were identified as possible biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis of DENV disease in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of Dengue-positive patients. This study aimed to evaluate the expression levels of and in DENV-infected patients and compare them with healthy donors (HD) to provide new insights into the biological significance of these two circRNAs' expression.

Methods: We examined the presence and expression levels of and in PBMC of DENV-patients throughout a period of 28 days after the DENV diagnosis. HD was used as a control group.

Results: Our results show different expression levels and patterns between and , both in DENV patients and HD.

Conclusion: Possible change in the expression during DENV infection was observed, mainly at the time of diagnosis, but without a consistent pattern among patients during follow-up. Further studies are needed to clarify their expression levels and function both in Dengue-positive patients and HD.