{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,13]],"date-time":"2026-05-13T05:12:34Z","timestamp":1778649154760,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":33,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,13]],"date-time":"2026-05-13T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1778630400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100032486","name":"Qatar Research, Development and Innovation Council","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100032486","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Immunol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Rationale<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Childhood obesity is a known risk factor for asthma and contributes to increased disease severity and reduced corticosteroid responsiveness. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this comorbidity remain unclear. Using a cross-sectional design, we aimed to identify microRNA (miRNA) signatures associated with asthma\u2013obesity comorbidity in children to shed light on potential shared molecular drivers.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Whole blood samples were collected from four pediatric groups: normal weight with asthma (NW-A, n = 11), overweight\/obesity with asthma (OO-A, n = 10), overweight\/obesity without asthma (OO, n = 10), and normal weight without asthma (NW, n = 12). Circulating miRNA profiles were assessed using the NanoString nCounter platform. Differential expression and pathway enrichment analyses were performed using Enrichr and other bioinformatic tools. Correlation with clinical and cytokine data was assessed by Pearson\u2019s correlation and multiple regression analyses.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>miRNA expression profiles differed markedly across the four groups. Five miRNAs (miR- 423-3p, -92a-3p, -4536-5p, -197-3p, -891a-5p) were consistently upregulated, and two (miR-144-3p, -641) were downregulated across asthma alone, obesity alone, and asthma-obesity comorbidity. Target gene analysis of OO-A-associated miRNAs highlighted involvement in IL-4, IL-13, and PIP3\/AKT signaling, as well as pathways linked to innate immunity and metabolism. In OO-A, miRNA dysregulation was correlated with elevated neutrophils, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and reduced lung function.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>In this exploratory study, we identified a shared circulating miRNA signature in asthma\u2013obesity comorbidity. These miRNAs may serve as biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets for stratifying and managing asthma in children with obesity, pending validation in longitudinal studies.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fimmu.2026.1792996","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,13]],"date-time":"2026-05-13T04:45:49Z","timestamp":1778647549000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["miRNA profiling shows shared signatures in pediatric asthma, obesity and their comorbidity"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Harshita","family":"Shailesh","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatric Medicine, Division of Pulmonology, Sidra Medicine","place":["Doha, Qatar"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mohamed Nadhir","family":"Djekidel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Department, Sidra 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