Human coronary heart disease: importance of blood cellular miR-2909 RNomics

Gentisic acid ameliorates type 2 diabetes induced by Nicotinamide-Streptozotocin in male mice by attenuating pancreatic oxidative stress and inflammation through modulation of Nrf2 and NF-кB pathways

AIMS

There is a close link between oxidative stress, inflammation, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Gentisic acid (GA) is a di-phenolic compound and an active metabolite of aspirin that possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, but its potential anti-diabetic effects have not been evaluated so far. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate GA's potential antidiabetic effects through the Nuclear Factor Erythroid 2-Related Factor (Nrf2) and Nuclear Factor Kappa Beta (NF-кB) signaling pathways.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

In this study, T2DM induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of STZ (65 mg/kg B.W) after 15 min nicotinamide (120 mg/kg B.W) injection. After seven days of injections, fasting blood glucose (FBS) was measured. Seven days after FBS monitoring treatments started. Grouping and treatments were as follows: 1) Normal control group; NC, 2) Diabetic control group; DC, 3) Metformin group; MT (150 mg/kg B.W, daily), 4) Test group; GA (100 mg/kg B.W, daily). Treatments continued for 14 consecutive days.

KEY FINDINGS

Diabetic mice treatment with GA significantly decreased FBS, improved plasma lipid profiles and pancreatic antioxidant status. GA modulated Nrf2 pathway by upregulation of Nrf2 protein, NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase 1 (Nqo1), and p21, and downregulation of miR-200a, Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1), and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase-2 (NOX2). Also, GA attenuated inflammation by upregulation of metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) and downregulation of miR-125b, NF-кB, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß).

SIGNIFICANCE

GA attenuates T2DM, possibly by improving antioxidant status through the Nrf2 pathway and attenuation of inflammation.

MicroRNAs as Biomarkers for Coronary Artery Disease Related to Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus-From Pathogenesis to Potential Clinical Application

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic metabolic disease with still growing incidence among adults and young people worldwide. Patients with T2DM are more susceptible to developing coronary artery disease (CAD) than non-diabetic individuals. The currently used diagnostic methods do not ensure the detection of CAD at an early stage. Thus, extensive research on non-invasive, blood-based biomarkers is necessary to avoid life-threatening events. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, endogenous, non-coding RNAs that are stable in human body fluids and easily detectable. A number of reports have highlighted that the aberrant expression of miRNAs may impair the diversity of signaling pathways underlying the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis, which is a key player linking T2DM with CAD. The preclinical evidence suggests the atheroprotective and atherogenic influence of miRNAs on every step of T2DM-induced atherogenesis, including endothelial dysfunction, endothelial to mesenchymal transition, macrophage activation, vascular smooth muscle cells proliferation/migration, platelet hyperactivity, and calcification. Among the 122 analyzed miRNAs, 14 top miRNAs appear to be the most consistently dysregulated in T2DM and CAD, whereas 10 miRNAs are altered in T2DM, CAD, and T2DM-CAD patients. This up-to-date overview aims to discuss the role of miRNAs in the development of diabetic CAD, emphasizing their potential clinical usefulness as novel, non-invasive biomarkers and therapeutic targets for T2DM individuals with a predisposition to undergo CAD.

Phenotype-genotype network construction and characterization: a case study of cardiovascular diseases and associated non-coding RNAs

The phenotype–genotype relationship is a key for personalized and precision medicine for complex diseases. To unravel the complexity of the clinical phenotype–genotype network, we used cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and associated non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) (i.e. miRNAs, long ncRNAs, etc.) as the case for the study of CVDs at a systems or network level. We first integrated a database of CVDs and ncRNAs (CVDncR, http://sysbio.org.cn/cvdncr/) to construct CVD–ncRNA networks and annotate their clinical associations. To characterize the networks, we then separated the miRNAs into two groups, i.e. universal miRNAs associated with at least two types of CVDs and specific miRNAs related only to one type of CVD. Our analyses indicated two interesting patterns in these CVD–ncRNA networks. First, scale-free features were present within both CVD–miRNA and CVD–lncRNA networks; second, universal miRNAs were more likely to be CVDs biomarkers. These results were confirmed by computational functional analyses. The findings offer theoretical guidance for decoding CVD–ncRNA associations and will facilitate the screening of CVD ncRNA biomarkers.

Database URL: http://sysbio.org.cn/cvdncr/

Chemical induced pathognomonic features observed in human vitiligo are mediated through miR-2909 RNomics pathway

BACKGROUND

Chemicals like Monobenzyl Ether of Hydroquinone (MBEH) and 4-Tertiary Butyl Phenol (4-TBP) have been widely recognized to induce clinical lesions that resemble vitiligo, but exact molecular pathway through which these chemicals initiate vitiligo is still far from clear.

OBJECTIVES

Since vitiligo is widely considered as an autoimmune disease, this study was an attempt to understand miR-2909 RNomics in vitiligo pathogenesis using MBEH treated primary melanocytes as an archetype cellular model because MBEH causes pathological features indistinguishable from clinical vitiligo.

METHODS

Primary melanocytes were treated with MBEH and 4-TBP and the role of miR-2909 RNomics at transcriptional and translational level was explored through qRT-PCR, western blot analysis, flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry, immunohistochemistry and in silico binding affinities. 4 mm punch biopsies were also obtained from lesional sites of vitiligo patients to validate the results observed in cell culture experiments.

RESULTS

MBEH induced miR-2909 RNomics led to downregulation of MITF, TYR, TYRP1, and TYRP2 leading to decreased melanin synthesis which in turn is a characteristic trait of vitiligo. On the other hand, 4-TBP increased TGF-β which also has the intrinsic capacity to downregulate MITF leading to decreased melanin synthesis and thereby initiation of vitiligo.

CONCLUSION

Based upon our results we propose a molecular pathway which has the inherent capacity to resolve the mechanism through which these chemicals may induce vitiligo. This mechanism was also found to be involved in the lesional biopsies of vitiligo patients. These results could be exploited in better understanding the pathogenesis as well as in treatment of vitiligo.

Protective effect of FBXL10 in myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury via inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to investigate the mechanism and effect of FBXL10 in myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury in vivo and in vitro.

METHODS

The myocardial ischemia reperfusion (I/R) model was established by 30 min of coronary occlusion followed by 2 h of reperfusion in rats. Western blot and TUNEL assay were used to measure the apoptosis during I/R. The expression levels of endoplasmic reticulum related proteins in myocardial tissues and H9c2 cells were detected by immunohistochemistry staining and immunofluorescence staining. Flow cytometry and CCK-8 were used to detect the apoptosis and viability of H9c2 cells.

RESULTS

The results revealed that FBXL10 significantly reduced myocardial infarction, improved the pathological morphology of myocardium, markedly reduced inflammatory response in the myocardial ischemia reperfusion rats. Moreover the expressions of endoplasmic reticulum stress key proteins were caused by I/R were suppressed significantly by FBXL10 treatment, including CHOP, GRP78, ATF4 and p-PERK. Additionally FBXL10 inhibited the expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress key proteins in H/R H9c2 cells. Furthermore, FBXL10 reduced the levels of apoptotic cells and inflammatory response compared with I/R and H/R group.

CONCLUSION

Taken together, we found that FBXL10 could attenuate I/R injury through inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERs).

MicroRNA-138 attenuates myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury through inhibiting mitochondria-mediated apoptosis by targeting HIF1-α

Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is considered to have a detrimental role in coronary heart disease, which is considered to be the leading cause of death worldwide. However, the molecular mechanism involved in the progression of myocardial I/R injury is still unclear. The current study aimed to investigate the expression and function of microRNA (miR)-138 in the process of myocardial I/R injury. First, miR-138 expression levels were analyzed both in myocardium with I/R injury and control myocardium using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Then, the relationship between the levels of miR-138 and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)1-α was also investigated using a luciferase reporter assay. Assessment of myocardial infarct size, measurements of serum myocardial enzymes and electron microscopy analysis were all utilized to analyse the effect of miR-138 on myocardial I/R injury. The authors of current study also used western blotting to examine the expression levels of the mitochondrial fission-related proteins dynamin-1-like protein and mitochondrial fission 1 protein. It was found that miR-138 is downregulated and HIF1-α is upregulated after myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury. Overexpression of miR-138 reduced myocardial I/R injury-induced infarct sizes and myocardial enzyme levels, and it also inhibited the expression of proteins related to mitochondrial morphology and myocardial I/R-induced mitochondrial apoptosis by targeting HIF1-α. Taken together, these findings provide a novel insight into the molecular mechanism of miR-138 and HIF1-α in the progression of myocardial I/R injury. miR-138 has the potential to become a promising therapeutic target for treating myocardial I/R injury.

Impact of miR-223-3p and miR-2909 on inflammatory factors IL-6, IL-1ß, and TNF-α, and the TLR4/TLR2/NF-κB/STAT3 signaling pathway induced by lipopolysaccharide in human adipose stem cells

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA molecules that play an important role in the regulation of gene expression related to inflammatory responses. Human adipose stem cells are characterized by pluripotent differentiation potential and isolated from adipose tissues. These cells regulate inflammation mainly by interacting with immune cells and affecting the secretion of immune factors; details of this interaction are currently unknown. In the current study, we successfully established an acute inflammation model and a chronic inflammation model involving adipose stem cells. We used high-throughput miRNA microarray analysis to identify miRNAs that were significantly (p < 0.05) differentially expressed during both acute and chronic inflammation. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the expression of miR-223-3P and miR-2909, while promoting the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin (IL) 6, IL-1β, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α via the Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4/TLR2/nuclear factor (NF)-κB/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 3 signaling pathway in human adipose stem cells. Further, miR-223-3P expression was significantly (p < 0.05) reduced in human adipose stem cells during activation by IL-6 stimulation. The inducible down-regulation of miR-223-3P resulted in the activation of STAT3, which was directly targeted by miR-223-3P. STAT3 directly targeted TLR4 and TLR2, promoting the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-6, and formed a positive feedback loop to regulate IL-6 levels. Similarly, TNF-α significantly (p < 0.05) increased the expression of miR-223-3p, with LPS and TLR4/TLR2/NF-κB/STAT3 forming a negative feedback loop to regulate TNF-α levels. In addition, miR-2909, which depends on NF-κB, targeted Krueppel-like factor (KLF) 4 to regulate the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α. We conclude that miR-223-3p and miR-2909 form a complex regulatory network with pro-inflammatory factors and signaling pathways in adipose stem cells stimulated by LPS. These findings will inform the development of therapies against autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Possible role of miR-2909 RNomics in arsenic mediated pancreatic β-cell dysfunction

Chronic exposure of humans to inorganic arsenic as a potential risk for the incidence of diabetes has received wide attention. However, the biological mechanism through which arsenic plays a role in the development of diabetes is still being evaluated. One of the hallmark of diabetes is the β-cell dysfunction followed by the changes in the insulin secretion. Pancreatic duodenal homeobox 1 (PDX1) has been widely recognized to play crucial role in the β-cell development, survival and its regulation of insulin gene expression. Many of the arsenic mediated cellular affects have been shown to be regulated by miR-2909 in vitro. Our present study provides evidence to reveal that arsenic affects miR-2909 expression in the pancreatic β-cell and this novel miRNA regulates PDX1 transcriptional expression indirectly through genes coding for c-Jun, MafA, PI3K and directly at the translational level by targeting the PDX1 mRNA. We provide further evidence for this miR-2909 RNomics in pancreatic tissue obtained from NOD mice where the expression of miR-2909 was high compared to the control mice. Keeping in view the fact that arsenic is known to cause β-cell dysfunction and most of the cellular effects of arsenic have been shown to be mediated through miR-2909 RNomics, our study revealed that arsenic employs miR-2909 (at low doses) and c-Jun (at high doses) to down regulate PDX1 in order to cause β-cell dysfunction leading to diabetic state.

MicroRNA-140 attenuates myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury through suppressing mitochondria-mediated apoptosis by targeting YES1

Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is thought to have its detrimental role in coronary heart disease (CHD), which is considered as the foremost cause of death all over the world. However, molecular mechanism in the progression of myocardial I/R injury is still unclear. The goal of this study was to investigate the expression and function of microRNA-140 (miR-140) in the process of myocardial I/R injury. The miR-140 expression level was analyzed in the myocardium with I/R injury and control myocardium using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Then the relation between the level of miR-140 and YES proto-oncogene 1 (YES1) was also investigated via luciferase reporter assay. Assessment of myocardial infarct size measurement of serum myocardial enzymes and electron microscopy analysis were used for analyzing the effect of miR-140 on myocardial I/R injury. We also used Western blot analysis to examine the expression levels of the mitochondrial fission-related proteins, Drp1 and Fis1. miR-140 is downregulated, and YES1 is upregulated after myocardial I/R injury. Overexpression of miR-140 could reduce the increase related to myocardial I/R injury in infarct size and myocardial enzymes, and it also could inhibit the expression of proteins related to mitochondrial morphology and myocardial I/R-induced mitochondrial apoptosis by targeting YES1. Taken together, these findings may provide a novel insight into the molecular mechanism of miR-140 and YES1 in the progression of myocardial I/R injury. MiR-140 might become a promising therapeutic target for treating myocardial I/R injury.

An androgen-regulated miR-2909 modulates TGFβ signalling through AR/miR-2909 axis in prostate cancer

In recent years, microRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as promising biomarkers for PCa diagnosis and prognosis. miR-2909 is a novel miRNA that can regulate immunogenomics and oncogenomics. The present study investigated the role of miR-2909 in the pathogenesis of PCa and the potential signalling pathways through which it operates. We have identified miR-2909 as a novel mediator of androgen/androgen receptor (AR) signalling that enhances the proliferation potential of PCa cells and assists in cancer survival under reduced androgen levels. Our results revealed that miR-2909 down regulates TGFBR2 by targeting its 3'-UTR sequence. We also observed that miR-2909 over-expression attenuated TGFβ-mediated SMAD3 activation, cell growth inhibition and apoptosis. Moreover, miR-2909 modulated the expression of p21CIP, c-MYC and CCND1 through TGFβ signalling. Importantly, we also demonstrated that miR-2909 and AR regulates each other's expression resulting in a positive feedback loop. In conclusion, our study suggests that miR-2909 is an androgen-inducible miRNA that exerts its oncogenic effects by attenuating the tumor-suppressive effects of TGFβ signalling.

APOBEC3G governs the generation of truncated AATF protein to ensure oncogenic transformation

The oncogenic potential of Apolipoprotein B mRNA editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like 3G (APOBEC3G) was recently appreciated by the finding that revealed its ability to downregulate Kruppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) gene translation through its affinity for 3'UTR of KLF4 mRNA. Keeping in view the fact that KLF4 is known to repress apoptosis antagonizing transcription factor (AATF) gene expression, the present study employed stem cells as archetype model to explore the effect of APOBEC3G over-expression upon AATF gene expression within these cells as well as on the genes involved in oncogenic transformation. Such a study revealed that APOBEC3G had the ability to bind AATF mRNA within its third exon to facilitate the generation of truncated 23 kDa AATF translation product which, in turn, had the inherent capacity to be the crucial mediator of APOBEC3G induced oncogenic transformation within such cells.

APOBEC3G governs to ensure cellular oncogenic transformation

The oncogenic potential of APOBEC3G gene was recently appreciated by the finding that revealed inhibitory influence of APOBEC3G upon micro-RNA mediated repression of the gene responsible for hepatic metastasis. Here we report for the first time that sustained APOBEC3G expression is the characteristic trait exhibited by various cancer cells of different tissue origins as well as APOBEC3G represses cellular gene coding for tumor suppressor KLF4 by binding to its mRNA. This phenomenon was paralleled by the sustained expression of the cellular SP1 which ensured overexpression of genes coding for c-myc, Bmi-1, BCL-2 and MDM2 coupled with downregulation of tumor suppressor p53 thereby creating a favorable situation for oncogenic transformation.

Mitochondrial uncoupling protein (UCP2) gene expression is regulated by miR-2909

Reversible decoupling of glycolysis from aerobic-respiration has been widely recognized to be a crucial step in tailoring immune response by the human cells. In this context, the study reported here revealed for the first time that cooperativity between Apoptosis Antagonizing Transcription Factor (AATF) mRNA and miR-2909 within cellular AATF RNome ensures the regulation of mitochondrial uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) expression in a cyclic fashion and this phenomenon is substantiated when the immune cells face high glucose threat.

Analysis of chromosome 17 miRNAs and their importance in medulloblastomas

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small sequences of nucleotides that regulate posttranscriptionally gene expression. In recent years they have been recognized as very important general regulators of proliferation, differentiation, adhesion, cell death, and others. In some cases, the characteristic presence of miRNAs reflects some of the cellular pathways that may be altered. Particularly medulloblastomas (MB) represent entities that undergo almost characteristic alterations of chromosome 17: from loss of discrete fragments and isochromosomes formation to complete loss of one of them. An analysis of the major loci on this chromosome revealed that it contains at least 19 genes encoding miRNAs which may regulate the development and differentiation of the brain and cerebellum. miRNAs are regulators of real complex networks; they can regulate from 100 to over 300 messengers of various proteins. In this review some miRNAs are considered to be important in MB studies. Some of them are miRNA-5047, miRNA-1253, miRNA-2909, and miRNA-634. Everyone can significantly affect the development, growth, and cell invasion of MB, and they have not been explored in this tumor. In this review, we propose some miRNAs that can affect some genes in MB, and hence the importance of its study.

Epigenetic code and potential epigenetic-based therapies against chronic diseases in developmental origins

Accumulated findings have demonstrated that the epigenetic code provides a potential link between prenatal stress and changes in gene expression that could be involved in the developmental programming of various chronic diseases in later life. Meanwhile, based on the fact that epigenetic modifications are reversible and can be manipulated, this provides a unique chance to develop multiple novel epigenetic-based therapeutic strategies against many chronic diseases in early developmental periods. This article will give a short review of recent findings of prenatal insult-induced epigenetic changes in developmental origins of several chronic diseases, and will attempt to provide an overview of the current epigenetic-based strategies applied in the early prevention, diagnosis and possible therapies for human chronic diseases.