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Ameling S, Kacprowski T, Chilukoti RK, Malsch C, Liebscher V, Suhre K, Pietzner M, Friedrich N, Homuth G, Hammer E, Völker U. Associations of circulating plasma microRNAs with age, body mass index and sex in a population-based study. BMC Med Genomics 2015; 8:61. [PMID: 26462558 PMCID: PMC4604724 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-015-0136-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 123] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2015] [Accepted: 09/20/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Non-cellular blood circulating microRNAs (plasma miRNAs) represent a promising source for the development of prognostic and diagnostic tools owing to their minimally invasive sampling, high stability, and simple quantification by standard techniques such as RT-qPCR. So far, the majority of association studies involving plasma miRNAs were disease-specific case-control analyses. In contrast, in the present study, plasma miRNAs were analysed in a sample of 372 individuals from a population-based cohort study, the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP). Methods Quantification of miRNA levels was performed by RT-qPCR using the Exiqon Serum/Plasma Focus microRNA PCR Panel V3.M covering 179 different miRNAs. Of these, 155 were included in our analyses after quality-control. Associations between plasma miRNAs and the phenotypes age, body mass index (BMI), and sex were assessed via a two-step linear regression approach per miRNA. The first step regressed out the technical parameters and the second step determined the remaining associations between the respective plasma miRNA and the phenotypes of interest. Results After regressing out technical parameters and adjusting for the respective other two phenotypes, 7, 15, and 35 plasma miRNAs were significantly (q < 0.05) associated with age, BMI, and sex, respectively. Additional adjustment for the blood cell parameters identified 12 and 19 miRNAs to be significantly associated with age and BMI, respectively. Most of the BMI-associated miRNAs likely originate from liver. Sex-associated differences in miRNA levels were largely determined by differences in blood cell parameters. Thus, only 7 as compared to originally 35 sex-associated miRNAs displayed sex-specific differences after adjustment for blood cell parameters. Conclusions These findings emphasize that circulating miRNAs are strongly impacted by age, BMI, and sex. Hence, these parameters should be considered as covariates in association studies based on plasma miRNA levels. The established experimental and computational workflow can now be used in future screening studies to determine associations of plasma miRNAs with defined disease phenotypes. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12920-015-0136-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Ameling
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany. .,DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Tim Kacprowski
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Ravi Kumar Chilukoti
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Carolin Malsch
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Volkmar Liebscher
- Institute of Mathematics and Informatics, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-University, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Karsten Suhre
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Education City, PO Box 24144, Doha, Qatar. .,Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany, Research Centre for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
| | - Maik Pietzner
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Nele Friedrich
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany. .,DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Georg Homuth
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Elke Hammer
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany. .,DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
| | - Uwe Völker
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, , Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Str. 15A, D-17475, Greifswald, Germany. .,DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
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Kwekel JC, Vijay V, Desai VG, Moland CL, Fuscoe JC. Age and sex differences in kidney microRNA expression during the life span of F344 rats. Biol Sex Differ 2015; 6:1. [PMID: 25653823 PMCID: PMC4316605 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-014-0019-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2014] [Accepted: 12/29/2014] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Growing evidence suggests that epigenetic mechanisms of gene regulation may play a role in susceptibilities to specific toxicities and adverse drug reactions. MiRNAs in particular have been shown to be important regulators in cancer and other diseases and show promise as predictive biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis. In this study, we characterized the global kidney miRNA expression profile in untreated male and female F344 rats throughout the life span. These findings were correlated with sex-specific susceptibilities to adverse renal events, such as male-biased renal fibrosis and inflammation in old age. Methods Kidney miRNA expression was examined in F344 rats at 2, 5, 6, 8, 15, 21, 78, and 104 weeks of age in both sexes using Agilent miRNA microarrays. Differential expression was determined using filtering criteria of ≥1.5 fold change and ANOVA or pairwise t-test (FDR <5%) to determine significant age and sex effects, respectively. Pathway analysis software was used to investigate the possible roles of these target genes in age- and sex-specific differences. Results Three hundred eleven miRNAs were found to be expressed in at least one age and sex. Filtering criteria revealed 174 differentially expressed miRNAs in the kidney; 173 and 34 miRNAs exhibiting age and sex effects, respectively. Principal component analysis revealed age effects predominated over sex effects, with 2-week miRNA expression being much different from other ages. No significant sexually dimorphic miRNA expression was observed from 5 to 8 weeks, while the most differential expression (13 miRNAs) was observed at 21 weeks. Potential target genes of these differentially expressed miRNAs were identified. Conclusions The expression of 56% of detected renal miRNAs was found to vary significantly with age and/or sex during the life span of F344 rats. Pathway analysis suggested that 2-week-expressed miRNAs may be related to organ and cellular development and proliferation pathways. Male-biased miRNA expression at older ages correlated with male-biased renal fibrosis and mononuclear cell infiltration. These miRNAs showed high representation in renal inflammation and nephritis pathways, and included miR-214, miR-130b, miR-150, miR-223, miR-142-5p, miR-185, and miR-296*. Analysis of kidney miRNA expression throughout the rat life span will improve the use of current and future renal biomarkers and inform our assessments of kidney injury and disease. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13293-014-0019-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua C Kwekel
- Division of Systems Biology, Personalized Medicine Branch, National Center for Toxicological Research, US Food and Drug Administration, 3900 NCTR Road, Jefferson, AR 72079 USA
| | - Vikrant Vijay
- Division of Systems Biology, Personalized Medicine Branch, National Center for Toxicological Research, US Food and Drug Administration, 3900 NCTR Road, Jefferson, AR 72079 USA
| | - Varsha G Desai
- Division of Systems Biology, Personalized Medicine Branch, National Center for Toxicological Research, US Food and Drug Administration, 3900 NCTR Road, Jefferson, AR 72079 USA
| | - Carrie L Moland
- Division of Systems Biology, Personalized Medicine Branch, National Center for Toxicological Research, US Food and Drug Administration, 3900 NCTR Road, Jefferson, AR 72079 USA
| | - James C Fuscoe
- Division of Systems Biology, Personalized Medicine Branch, National Center for Toxicological Research, US Food and Drug Administration, 3900 NCTR Road, Jefferson, AR 72079 USA
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Addis R, Campesi I, Fois M, Capobianco G, Dessole S, Fenu G, Montella A, Cattaneo MG, Vicentini LM, Franconi F. Human umbilical endothelial cells (HUVECs) have a sex: characterisation of the phenotype of male and female cells. Biol Sex Differ 2014; 5:18. [PMID: 25535548 PMCID: PMC4273493 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-014-0018-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2014] [Accepted: 11/20/2014] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Human umbilical endothelial cells (HUVECs) are widely used to study the endothelial physiology and pathology that might be involved in sex and gender differences detected at the cardiovascular level. This study evaluated whether HUVECs are sexually dimorphic in their morphological, proliferative and migratory properties and in the gene and protein expression of oestrogen and androgen receptors and nitric oxide synthase 3 (NOS3). Moreover, because autophagy is influenced by sex, its degree was analysed in male and female HUVECs (MHUVECs and FHUVECs). Methods Umbilical cords from healthy, normal weight male and female neonates born to healthy non-obese and non-smoking women were studied. HUVEC morphology was analysed by electron microscopy, and their function was investigated by proliferation, viability, wound healing and chemotaxis assays. Gene and protein expression for oestrogen and androgen receptors and for NOS3 were evaluated by real-time PCR and Western blotting, respectively, and the expression of the primary molecules involved in autophagy regulation [protein kinase B (Akt), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), beclin-1 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3)] were detected by Western blotting. Results Cell proliferation, migration NOS3 mRNA and protein expression were significantly higher in FHUVECs than in MHUVECs. Conversely, beclin-1 and the LC3-II/LC3-I ratio were higher in MHUVECs than in FHUVECs, indicating that male cells are more autophagic than female cells. The expression of oestrogen and androgen receptor genes and proteins, the protein expression of Akt and mTOR and cellular size and shape were not influenced by sex. Body weights of male and female neonates were not significantly different, but the weight of male babies positively correlated with the weight of the mother, suggesting that the mother’s weight may exert a different influence on male and female babies. Conclusions The results indicate that sex differences exist in prenatal life and are parameter-specific, suggesting that HUVECs of both sexes should be used as an in vitro model to increase the quality and the translational value of research. The sex differences observed in HUVECs could be relevant in explaining the diseases of adulthood because endothelial dysfunction has a crucial role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, neurodegeneration and immune disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Addis
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Ilaria Campesi
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy.,National Laboratory of Gender Medicine of the National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems, Osilo, Sassari Italy
| | - Marco Fois
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Giampiero Capobianco
- Department of Surgical, Microsurgical and Medical Sciences, Gynaecologic and Obstetric Clinic, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Salvatore Dessole
- Department of Surgical, Microsurgical and Medical Sciences, Gynaecologic and Obstetric Clinic, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Grazia Fenu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Andrea Montella
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
| | - Maria Grazia Cattaneo
- Department of Medical Biotechnology and Translational Medicine, University of Milano, Milano, Italy
| | - Lucia M Vicentini
- Department of Medical Biotechnology and Translational Medicine, University of Milano, Milano, Italy
| | - Flavia Franconi
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy.,National Laboratory of Gender Medicine of the National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems, Osilo, Sassari Italy.,Assessorato alle Politiche per la Persona, Region Basilicata, Italy
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Murphy SJ, Lusardi TA, Phillips JI, Saugstad JA. Sex differences in microRNA expression during development in rat cortex. Neurochem Int 2014; 77:24-32. [PMID: 24969725 PMCID: PMC4177314 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuint.2014.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2014] [Revised: 06/09/2014] [Accepted: 06/16/2014] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
There are important sex differences in the risk and outcome of conditions and diseases between males and females. For example, stroke occurs with greater frequency in men than in women across diverse ethnic backgrounds and nationalities. Work from our lab and others have revealed a sex-specific sensitivity to cerebral ischemia whereby males exhibit a larger extent of brain damage following an ischemic event compared to females. Studies suggest that the difference in male and female susceptibility to ischemia may be triggered by innate variations in gene regulation and protein expression between the sexes that are independent of post-natal exposure to sex hormones. We have shown that there are differences in microRNA (miRNA) expression in adult male and female brain following focal cerebral ischemia in mouse cortex. Herein we examine a role for differential expression of miRNAs during development in male and female rat cortex as potential effectors of the phenotype that leads to sex differences to ischemia. Expression studies in male and female cortices isolated from postnatal day 0 (P0), postnatal day 7 (P7), and adult rats using TaqMan Low Density miRNA arrays and NanoString nCounter analysis revealed differential miRNA levels between males and females at each developmental stage. We focused on the miR-200 family of miRNAs that showed higher levels in females at P0, but higher levels in males at P7 that persisted into adulthood, and validated the expression of miR-200a, miR-200b, and miR-429 by individual qRT-PCR as these are clustered on chromosome 5 and may be transcriptionally co-regulated. Prediction analysis of the miR-200 miRNAs revealed that genes within the Gonadotropin releasing hormone receptor pathway are the most heavily targeted. These studies support that developmental changes in miRNA expression may influence phenotypes in adult brain that underlie sexually dimorphic responses to disease, including ischemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie J Murphy
- Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Theresa A Lusardi
- Dow Neurobiology Laboratories, Legacy Research Institute, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Jay I Phillips
- Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Julie A Saugstad
- Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
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