Identification of circular RNA hsa_circ_001879 and hsa_circ_004104 as novel biomarkers for coronary artery disease

The circRNA profiles of 24 CAD patients and 7 controls were performed by microarray. Six classifiers were used to evaluate potential circRNAs biomarkers. The expression levels of candidate circRNAs were further verified by qRT-PCR in large cohorts. Logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristic were conducted to assess the diagnostic value. A total of 624 circRNAs and 171 circRNAs were significantly upregulated and downregulated, respectively, in CAD patients relative to controls. A four-circRNA signature was identified using six different classifiers. Among these four circRNAs, hsa_circ_001879 and hsa_circ_004104 were found significantly upregulated in validation cohorts. We offered a transcriptome-wide overview of aberrantly expressed circRNAs in CAD patients, and Hsa_circ_001879 and hsa_circ_004104 were replicated and identified to be significantly upregulated in CAD patients. Our results suggested that hsa_circ_001879 and hsa_circ_004104 might serve as diagnostic biomarkers for CAD. 24 CAD patients and 7 controls