# Association of Long Non-Coding RNA Malat1 with Serum Levels of Interleukin-1 Beta and Vitamin D in Patients with Ischemic Stroke

## TL;DR

This study explores how a specific RNA (Malat1) relates to inflammation and vitamin D levels in patients with ischemic stroke.

## Contribution

The study is the first to analyze the association between Malat1, IL-1β, and vitamin D in ischemic stroke patients.

## Key findings

- Malat1 expression was inversely correlated with stroke severity.
- Vitamin D levels showed a positive correlation with Malat1 expression.
- Vitamin D levels were negatively correlated with IL-1β levels.

## Abstract

Background:Previous studies have demonstrated the strong association of
inflammatory cytokines and vitamin D (VitD) deficiency and ischemic stroke (IS)
pathogenesis. Due to the negative correlation between long non-coding RNA
(lncRNA) Malat1 and pro-inflammatory factors we decided to investigate the
associations between Malat1 expression with serum interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and
VitD levels in IS patients. Materials and Methods:In this cross-sectional study,
63 IS patients were included. We used enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to
evaluate the serum levels of VitD and IL-1β. Malat1 expression was evaluated by
the real-time polymerase chain reaction test. The associations between
Malat1expression with VitD and IL-1β were analysed with linear regression
(Stepwise model) and Pearson’s correlation analysis. Results: The Malat1
expression was inversely correlated with stroke severity (r=-0.25, P=0.043).
Stepwise regression analysis showed a significant positive relationship between
VitD level and Malat1 expression (Beta=0.28, P=0.02), and also showed a
non-significant negative relationship between IL-1β and stroke severity. VitD
level showed a positive Pearson correlation with Malat1 (r=0.28, P=0.023) and a
negative correlation with IL-1β (r=-0.29, P=0.018) while it could not detect a
significantly negative correlation with stroke severity. Conclusion: For the
first time the associations between Malat1 expression with IL-1β and VitD in IS
patients was analyzed. We found a significant positive relationship between VitD
and Malat1. This correlation needs to be investigated with a larger sample size
to achieve a strong and reliable association between VitD and Malat1.