Comparative Evaluation of miRNA Detection in Plasma, Urine, and Liquid-Based Cytology (LBC) for High-Grade Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia

We profiled 798 miRNAs using NanoString technology in plasma, urine, and liquid-based cytology (LBC) from 24 women with and without high-grade cervical lesions (CIN2/3). LBC showed the highest detection efficiency and consistency, with the lowest proportion of low-count miRNAs and the highest expression levels, supporting its utility as the most effective specimen type for miRNA-based screening. In the study presented here, matched plasma, urine, and liquid-based cytology (LBC) samples were collected from 24 women—12 with high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN2/3) and 12 controls. Expression profiling of 798 miRNAs was performed using the NanoString nCounter Human v3 miRNA panel to compare detection performance across specimen types.