Unique diagnostic signatures of concussion in the saliva of male athletes: the Study of Concussion in Rugby Union through MicroRNAs (SCRUM)

Valentina Di Pietro, Patrick O'Halloran, Callum N Watson, Ghazala Begum, Animesh Acharjee, Kamal M Yakoub, Conor Bentley, David J Davies, Paolo Iliceto, Gabriella Candilera, David K Menon, Matthew J Cross, Keith A Stokes, Simon Pt Kemp, Antonio Belli

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of salivary small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) in the diagnosis of sport-related concussion.

METHODS: Saliva was obtained from male professional players in the top two tiers of England's elite rugby union competition across two seasons (2017-2019). Samples were collected preseason from 1028 players, and during standardised head injury assessments (HIAs) at three time points (in-game, post-game, and 36-48 hours post-game) from 156 of these. Samples were also collected from controls (102 uninjured players and 66 players sustaining a musculoskeletal injury). Diagnostic sncRNAs were identified with next generation sequencing and validated using quantitative PCR in 702 samples. A predictive logistic regression model was built on 2017-2018 data (training dataset) and prospectively validated the following season (test dataset).

RESULTS: The HIA process confirmed concussion in 106 players (HIA+) and excluded this in 50 (HIA-). 32 sncRNAs were significantly differentially expressed across these two groups, with let-7f-5p showing the highest area under the curve (AUC) at 36-48 hours. Additionally, a combined panel of 14 sncRNAs (let-7a-5p, miR-143-3p, miR-103a-3p, miR-34b-3p, RNU6-7, RNU6-45, Snora57, snoU13.120, tRNA18Arg-CCT, U6-168, U6-428, U6-1249, Uco22cjg1,YRNA_255) could differentiate concussed subjects from all other groups, including players who were HIA- and controls, immediately after the game (AUC 0.91, 95% CI 0.81 to 1) and 36-48 hours later (AUC 0.94, 95% CI 0.86 to 1). When prospectively tested, the panel confirmed high predictive accuracy (AUC 0.96, 95% CI 0.92 to 1 post-game and AUC 0.93, 95% CI 0.86 to 1 at 36-48 hours).

CONCLUSIONS: SCRUM, a large prospective observational study of non-invasive concussion biomarkers, has identified unique signatures of concussion in saliva of male athletes diagnosed with concussion.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1395-1404
JournalBritish Journal of Sports Medicine
Volume55
Issue number24
Early online date23 Mar 2021
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 23 Mar 2021

Bibliographical note

© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.

Keywords

  • brain
  • concussion
  • contact sports
  • diagnosis
  • trauma

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation
  • Orthopedics and Sports Medicine

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