The microRNA profile in neosquamous oesophageal mucosa following ablation of Barrett's oesophagus

mucosal biopsies were taken from patients at pre and post-argon plasma coagulation (APC) ablation of Barrett's oesophagus, and from healthy controls. Total RNA was extracted using Trizol. miRNA was reversed transcribed using a TaqMan® microRNA Reverse Transcription Kit (Life technologies, #4366596). miRNA profiling was performed with a high throughput TaqMan® OpenArray® Human microRNA panel (Life technologies, #4461104). The panel consisted of probes for 754 human miRNAs that are based on miRNA sequences derived from Sanger miRBase v14. Endoscopic surveillance remains the mainstay of cancer prevention in individuals with Barrett’s oesophagus, and definitive management by surgery or endoscopy is reserved for high grade dysplasia or cancer. There are several endoscopic treatments that are widely used for Barrett’s oesophagus, including argon plasma coagulation (APC). The normality of the regenerated neosquamous epithelium after ablation has been called into question. In the current study we profiled global microRNA expression in oesophageal mucosa before and after ablation of Barrett’s oesophagus using Argon plasma coagulation. Our aim was to investigate differences in microRNA expression between neosquamous and normal squamous tissues. Openarray high throughput real time PCR of microRNAs -- 10 patients without oesophageal disease, 17 patients with Barrett's oesophagus who underwent APC ablation of their Barrett's mucosa and 16 of these contributed a datapoint to neosquamous mucosa PCRs