Forensic Context

A study in humans analyzing peripheral blood mononuclear cells from coronary artery disease (CAD) patients identified a comprehensive ceRNA regulatory network and validated five key miRNAs, including the mir-373 which was found to be upregulated in CAD with an expression 2.70 times higher than in controls [He et al. DOI:10.1155/2021/6658115]. A review of the literature indicates that the mir-373 is a hypoxamir potently induced by hypoxia in a HIF-1α-dependent manner in mammalian cells, where it targets the RAD23B transcript to inhibit DNA repair [Nallamshetty et al. DOI:10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2013.05.022]. In the forensic pathology context of human asphyxia deaths, the mir-373 is identified as a diagnostic biomarker that is upregulated in lung tissue, with its function linked to the inhibition of DNA repair as part of the acute hypoxic response [Scopetti et al. DOI:10.7150/ijms.79539].