Forensic Context

A study in mice demonstrated that the circPSME4 is highly expressed in the brain and cerebellum, where it regulates neuronal plasticity and structural changes at the synapse during development [Sema Misir et al. DOI:10.1038/s41418-022-00948-7]. A study in human neonates identified 296 differentially expressed circular RNAs in peripheral blood from asphyxia-induced acute kidney injury cases, with hsa_circ_0120331 being one of several circRNAs found to be upregulated (Fold Change = 4.65) based on high-throughput sequencing analysis, though it was not among the subset validated by subsequent qPCR [Pan et al. DOI:10.1002/kjm2.12644]. A separate review highlights that circRNAs, found abundantly in biofluids like blood, are potential clinical biomarkers for human diseases, though their direct forensic application requires further validation [Lee et al. DOI:10.1016/j.biopha.2018.12.052].