Forensic Context

A study in humans identified 69 differentially expressed microRNAs in the whole blood of severely injured trauma patients, with let-7b showing a strong direct correlation with TLR3 gene expression (P < .0004; rho = 0.83) and direct correlations with clinical parameters including arterial blood gas HCO3 and base deficit [Uhlich et al. DOI:10.1016/j.surg.2014.06.017]. In a separate forensic investigation of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), hsa-let-7b was significantly upregulated in the brainstem tissue of SIDS cases compared to controls (p = .04), demonstrating its measurable dysregulation in archived formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues [Courts et al. DOI:10.1016/j.forsciint.2013.02.032].