en <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="text-autospace:none"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="color:#f79646">Aims:</span></span></span></b><b> </b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif">The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus is increasing dramatically worldwide. Dysregulation of microRNAs, key regulators of gene expression, has been reported in numerous diseases, including diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate miRNA-146a expression levels in patients with diabetes and healthy individuals and to determine whether changes in miRNA-146a levels are reliable biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="text-autospace:none"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="color:#f79646">Materials & Methods: </span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif">In this case-control study, participants (n=150) were allocated to two groups; type 2 diabetes mellitus (n=100/group) and healthy individuals (n=50/group) as controls (males and females, age: 40-70, body mass index: 25-35). Expression of miRNA was determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Furthermore, serum concentrations of TNF-&alpha;, IL-1&beta;, and fasting insulin were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance was calculated as an indicator of insulin resistance. <span style="letter-spacing:.1pt"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="text-autospace:none"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="color:#f79646"><span style="letter-spacing:.1pt">Findings: </span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="letter-spacing:.1pt">miR-146a was lower in diabetic patients, as evidenced by higher &Delta;Ct values (p<0.01)</span></span></span><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif">. Furthermore,<span style="letter-spacing:.1pt"> the pro-inflammatory cytokine levels were much higher among diabetic patients than in controls. That is, </span>IL-1&beta;<span style="letter-spacing:.1pt"> was significantly (p<0.01) higher in diabetics (93.9pg/ml; IQR: 50.1-122) than in controls (65.9pg/ml; IQR: 51.8-76.8). Similarly, TNF-&alpha; levels were significantly (p<0.0001) higher in diabetic individuals (26.1pg/ml; IQR: 17.1-31.6) than in healthy controls (16.1pg/ml; IQR: 13.5-20.9). </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="text-autospace:none"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="color:#f79646"><span style="letter-spacing:.1pt">Conclusion: </span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><span style="font-family:&quot;Cambria&quot;,serif"><span style="letter-spacing:.1pt">These findings indicate an increased pro-inflammatory state in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Tumor Necrosis Factor-α , Interleukin-1 Beta, miRNA-146a 1 8 http://ijwph.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-2398-1&slc_lang=en&sid=3 S.A. Dawood 1003194753284600380057 1003194753284600380057 No Al Shahed Mohammed Baqer Alhakim Hospital, Ministry of Health, Baghdad, Iraq M.I. Nader 1003194753284600380140 1003194753284600380140 Yes Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq