Effect of long-term corticosteroid treatment on microRNA and gene expression profiles in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

To investigate whether expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) are modulated by ICS treatment and whether this change in microRNA expression relates to improved clinical outcomes in COPD patients. The inclusion criteria for this study required participants to be steroid-naive or without inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) treatment for 6 months, current or ex-smokers with moderate-to-severe COPD. Patients included in this study were treated with 1) Placebo twice daily for 30 months; 2) fluticasone 500µg twice daily for 30 months; 3) fluticasone 500µg + salmeterol 50µg twice daily for 30 months. Bronchial biopsies for microRNA profiling were taken at baseline and 6- and 30-months.