Molecular Characterization in 3D Structure of MicroRNA Expressed in Leprosy

Introduction: Hansen's disease, or leprosy is caused by Mycobacterium leprae, is a major public health problem in developing countries, and affecting the skin and peripheral nerves. However, M. leprae can also affect bone tissue, mucous membranes, liver, eyes, and testicles, producing a variety of clinical phenotypes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been expressed in the various clinical forms of leprosy and could potentially be used for its diagnosis. Objective: In silico design of the molecular structure of miRNAs expressed in leprosy. Method: We performed a nucleotide sequence search of 17 miRNAs expressed in leprosy, designing in silico the molecular structure of the following miRNAs: miRNA-26a, miRNA-27a, miRNA-27b, miRNA-29c, miRNA-34c, miRNA-92a-1, miRNA-99a-2, miRNA-101-1, miRNA-101-2, miRNA-125b-1, miRNA-196b, miRNA-425-5p, miRNA-452, miRNA-455, miRNA-502, miRNA-539, and miRNA-660. We extracted the nucleotides were from the GenBank of National Center for Biotechnology Information genetic sequence database. We aligned the extracted sequences with the RNA Folding Form, and the three-dimensional molecular structure design was performed with the RNAComposer. Results: We demonstrate the nucleotide sequences, and molecular structure projection of miRNAs expressed in leprosy, and produces a tutorial on the molecular model of the 17 miRNAs expressed in leprosy through in silico projection processing of their molecular structures. Conclusion: We demonstrate in silico design of selected molecular structures of 17 miRNAs expressed in leprosy through computational biology.