Abstract: Objective To clarify the correlation between microRNA and aging in rhesus mulatta. Methods The monkeys were divided into four different age groups according to human aging, which were named the infant, the adult, the old and the longevity. Real-time PCR was used to detect the expression of microRNA and VEGFA, GHR, TBP, INSR, CLOCK, IKBKB, PIK3R1, LRP2, SSTR3, IGF1R, BCL2, PPM1D, IRS1, MAPK8, ADCY5, APP, NFE2L1, BDNF, PEX5 in peripheral blood leukocytes. Using microRNA target genes forecast website miRwalk, TargetSan, miRecords, miRDB to predicte miR-16-5p target genes. Next the predicted results were docked with Human Ageing Genomic Resources (http://genomics.senescence.info/). Results The expression of miR-16-5p in peripheral blood leukocytes of aging rhesus macaques tended to increase with age (P<0.001). The predicted target genes of miR-16-5p were 539, and 19 of these were overlapped with Human Ageing Genomic Resources. It was showed that the 10 mRNA of 19 genes were detected and their expression were differences in the aging process of rhesus monkeys. The expressions of IKBKB, PIK3R1 and IRS1 were decreased gradually with aging compared with the infant group. Conclusions The miR-16-5p can be used as a biomarker of peripheral blood leukocytes in rhesus monkeys. And IKBKB, PIK3R1, IRS1 may be the target genes of miR-16-5p in the aging process of rhesus monkeys.

Key words: Aging, rhesus mulatta, miR-16-5p, Maker