Ammonia induces autophagy via circ-IFNLR1/miR-2188-5p/RNF182 axis in tracheas of chickens

Identification and functional analysis of circular RNA expression profiles associated with ammonia exposure in chicken lungs

Ammonia acts as a detrimental atmospheric pollutant, posing a sever threat to respiratory tract health and causing lung injury in humans and animals. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a distinctive class of non-coding RNA generated by back-splicing of linear RNA, implicated in various biological processes. However, their role in the immune response of chicken lungs to ammonia exposure remains unclear. In this study, we examined the expression profiles of circRNAs in chicken lungs under ammonia stimulation. In total, 61 differentially expressed (DE) circRNAs were identified between the ammonia exposure and control groups, including 17 up-regulated and 44 down-regulated circRNAs. The source genes of these DE circRNAs were predominantly enriched in Influenza A, SNARE interactions in vesicular transport, and Notch signaling pathway. Notably, nine DE circRNAs (circNBAS, circMTIF2, circXPO1, circSNX24, circRAB11A, circARID3B, circUSP54, circPPARA, and circERG) were selected for validation the reliability and authenticity of RNA-seq data. Results showed the back-splicing circular structure, as well as the reliability and accuracy of RNA-seq data in quantifying circRNA expression, as the RT-qPCR results were in agreement with the RNA-seq data. Moreover, we constructed the circRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory networks and identified several regulatory networks in chicken lungs under ammonia stimulation, including circRAB11A-gga-miR-191b-3p-BRD2 and circARID3B-gga-miR-1696-CKS2. Taken together, our study delineates the circRNA expression profile and their potential roles in the immune response of chicken lungs to ammonia exposure. These findings offer insights into molecular mechanisms that may mitigate diseases associated with ammonia induced respiratory tract pollution in humans and animals.

Emerging roles of circular RNAs on the regulation of production traits in chicken

Chickens are vital agricultural animals that supply a significant portion of the protein consumed by humans. In society today, enhancing the productive performance of chickens in a safe and efficient manner has become a central focus of research. This performance is determined by various production traits that are primarily influenced by multiple factors, including epigenetics-a critical aspect of gene regulation. Circular RNAs (circRNAs), a unique class of non-coding RNAs, have emerged as key epigenetic regulators. Recent studies have demonstrated that circRNAs are extensively engaged in numerous production traits, which include skeletal muscle formation, fat deposition, ovarian follicle development, liver function, bone development, immunity, and resistance to environmental stress. These processes play crucial roles in determining the overall productivity of chickens. Given the significance of circRNAs in these various traits, this article provides a comprehensive review of the functional circRNAs associated with different traits in chickens, serving as a valuable theoretical reference for future research. Further investigation into the role of circRNAs may reveal novel insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying key economic traits in chickens and pave the way for innovative strategies in molecular breeding aimed at enhancing chicken productive performance.

BDE-47-induced damage prevented by melatonin in grass carp hepatocytes (L8824)

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are toxic to organisms with melatonin (MT) providing protection for tissues and cells against these. This study investigates the mechanism of damage of 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) and the cellular protection of MT on grass carp hepatocytes. Grass carp hepatocytes were exposed to 25 μmol/L BDE-47 and/or 40 μmol/L MT for 24 h before testing. Acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) double fluorescence staining results showed that BDE-47 could induce cell apoptosis. The expression levels of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-related genes ire1, atf4, grp78, perk, and chop were also significantly up-regulated (P < 0.01). The levels of the apoptosis-related genes caspase3, bax, and caspase9 were significantly up-regulated (P < 0.0001), while the level of bcl-2 was significantly down-regulated (P < 0.01). Compared with the BDE-47 group, the BDE-47 + MT group showed reduced levels of ER and apoptosis of hepatocytes, while the expression of the ER stress-related genes ire1, atf4, grp78, perk, and chop and the apoptosis-related genes caspase3, bax, and caspase9 were down-regulated (P < 0.05), and the level of bcl-2 was up-regulated (P < 0.01). In conclusion, BDE-47 can activate ER and apoptosis in grass carp hepatocytes, while MT can reduce these responses.

Thiram exposure induces tibial dyschondroplasia in broilers via the regulation effect of circ_003084/miR-130c-5p/BMPR1A crosstalk on chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation

Thiram, an agricultural insecticide, has been demonstrated to induce tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) in avian species. Circular RNA (circRNAs), a novel class of functional biological macromolecules characterized by their distinct circular structure, play crucial roles in various biological processes and diseases. Nevertheless, the precise regulatory mechanism underlying non-coding RNA involvement in thiram-induced broiler tibial chondrodysplasia remains elusive. In this study, we established a broiler model of thiram exposure for 10 days to assess TD and obtain a ceRNA network by RNA sequencing. By analyzing the differentially expressed circRNAs network, we id entify that circ_003084 was significantly upregulated in TD cartilage. Elevated circ_003084 inhibited TD chondrocytes proliferation and differentiation in vitro but promote apoptosis. Mechanistically, circ_003084 competitively binds to miR-130c-5p and prevents miR-130c-5p to decrease the level of BMPR1A, which upregulates the expression of apoptosis genes Caspase 3, Caspase 9, Bax and Bcl2, and finally facilitates cell apoptosis. Taken together, these findings imply that circ_003084/miR-130c-5p/BMPR1A interaction regulated TD chicken chondrocyte proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation. This is the first work to reveal the mechanism of regulation of circRNA-related ceRNA on thiram-induced TD, offering a key reference for environmental toxicology.

Inhalation of ammonia promotes apoptosis and induces autophagy in hepatocytes via Bax/BCl-2 and m-TOR/ATG5/LC-3bII axes

Ammonia (NH3) is an irritating gas and atmospheric pollutant that endangers the health of humans and animals by stimulating respiratory tract's mucosa and causing liver damage. However, physiological role of ammonia gas in hepatotoxicity remains unclear. To investigate the hepatotoxic effects of inhaled ammonia gas, experiments were conducted using mouse model exposed to 100 ppm of ammonia gas for 21 days. The exposed mice exhibited signs of depression, emaciation, and reduced growth. This study revealed that inhalation of ammonia led to significant decrease in water (P < 0.0001) and food intake (P < 0.05), resulting in slower growth. Histopathological analysis showed that ammonia stress alters the microstructure of the liver by enlarging the gap between hepatic lobule and fibrosis. Moreover, ammonia-induced stress significantly reduces the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein BCl-2 (P < 0.001), while elevates the mRNA expression of the pro-apoptotic gene Bax (P < 0.001). Furthermore, ammonia inhalation significantly increases the protein expression of LC-3bII (P < 0.05) and the mRNA expression of autophagy-related gene 5 (ATG5) (P < 0.05) and p62 (P < 0.05) while remarkably decreases the mRNA expression of mammalian target of rapamycin (m-TOR) (P < 0.05). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that inhalation of ammonia gas causes liver damage and suggests autophagy happening via m-TOR/p62/LC-3bII and pro-apoptosis effect mediated by Bax/BCl-2 in the liver damage caused by ammonia inhalation. Our study provides a new perspective on ammonia-induced hepatotoxicity.

New insights into Microalgal astaxanthin's effect on Lambda-cyhalothrin-induced lymphocytes immunotoxicity in Cyprinus carpio: Involving miRNA-194-5p-FoxO1-mediated-mitophagy and pyroptosis

Lambda-cyhalothrin (LC), a pyrethroid insecticide widely used in agriculture, causes immunotoxicity to aquatic organisms in the aquatic environment. Microalgal astaxanthin (MA) is a natural carotenoid that enhances viability of a variety of fish. To investigate the immunotoxicity of LC and the improvement effect of MA in lymphocytes (Cyprinus carpio), lymphocytes were treated with LC (80 M) and/or MA (50 M) for 24 h. Firstly, CCK8 combined with PI staining results showed that MA significantly attenuated the LC-induced lymphocyte death rate. Secondly, LC exposure resulted in excessively damaged mitochondrial and mtROS, diminished mitochondrial membrane potential and ATP content, which could be improved by MA. Thirdly, MA upregulated the levels of mitophagy-related regulatory factors (Beclin1, LC3, ATG5, Tom20 and Lamp2) induced by LC. Importantly, MA decreased the levels of pyroptosis-related genes treated with LC, including NLRP3, Cas-4, GSDMD and active Cas-1. Further study indicated that LC treatment caused excessive miRNA-194-5p and reduced levels of FoxO1, PINK1 and Parkin, which was inhibited by MA treatment. Overall, we concluded that MA could enhance damaged mitochondrial elimination by promoting the miRNA-194-5p-FoxO1-PINK1/Parkin-mitophagy in lymphocytes, which reduced mtROS accumulation and alleviated pyroptosis. It offers insights into the importance of MA application in aquaculture as well as the defense of farmed fish against agrobiological hazards in fish under LC.

Selenium Deficiency Promotes the Expression of LncRNA-MORC3, Activating NLRP3-Caspase-1/IL-1β Signaling to Induce Inflammatory Damage and Disrupt Tight Junctions in Piglets

Selenium (Se), as a trace element, is widely found in animals in the form of selenomethionine, which can provide nutrition to the body and has anti-inflammatory effects to prevent inflammatory damage in animals. In the past decade, there have been many studies on piglet diseases caused by selenium deficiency; however, under Se deficiency, the relationship between LncRNA-MORC3, inflammatory injury, and tight junctions in piglets has not yet been studied. We established piglet selenium deficiency models divided into three groups and obtained small intestinal tissues after 35 days of feeding. Small intestinal epithelial IPEC-J2 cells were divided into three groups, and samples were collected after 24 h of culture for qPCR and Western blot experiments. First, we found that Se deficiency led to an increase in LncRNA-MORC3 expression in piglets in vivo and in vitro. We found that the binding site of NLRP3 on LncRNA-MORC3 and the expression trends of both were the same: Se deficiency increased the secretion of NLRP3 and the expression levels of the inflammatory factors Caspase-1, ASC, IL-1β, IL-17, IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α, which are related to the NLRP3-Caspase-1/IL-1β signaling pathway. At the same time, Se deficiency decreased the expression levels of the tight junction factors ZO-1, Z0-2, Occludin, E-cadherin, and ZEB-1. This result showed that the tight junctions were disrupted. Herein, we demonstrated that Se deficiency promotes the expression of both LncRNA-MORC3 and inflammatory factors in piglets to activate the NLRP3-Caspase-1/IL-1β signaling pathway and disrupt tight junctions. Ultimately, these factors lead to inflammatory damage in piglet small intestinal tissues.

Selenium Deficiency Leads to Reduced Skeletal Muscle Cell Differentiation by Oxidative Stress in Mice

Selenium (Se) is one of the essential trace elements in animal organisms with good antioxidant and immune-enhancing abilities. In this study, we investigated the effect and mechanism of Se deficiency on skeletal muscle cell differentiation. A selenium-deficient skeletal muscle model was established. The skeletal muscle tissue and blood Se content were significantly reduced in the Se deficiency group. HE staining showed that the skeletal muscle tissue had a reduced myofiber area and nuclei and an increased myofascicular membrane with Se deficiency. The TUNEL test showed massive apoptosis of skeletal muscle cells in Se deficiency. With Se deficiency, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) increased, and the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) were inhibited. In in vitro experiments, microscopic observations showed that the low-Se group had reduced C2C12 cell fusion and a reduced number of differentiated myotubes. In addition, qPCR results showed that differentiation genes (Myog, Myod, Myh2, Myh3, and Myf5) were significantly reduced in the low Se group. Meanwhile, Western blot analysis showed that the levels of differentiation proteins (Myog, Myod, and Myhc) were significantly reduced in the low-Se group. This finding indicates that Se deficiency reduces the expression of skeletal muscle cell differentiation factors. All the above data suggest that Se deficiency can lead to oxidative stress in skeletal muscle, resulting in a reduction in the differentiation capacity of muscle cells.

Selenium Deficiency Caused Fibrosis as an Oxidative Stress-induced Inflammatory Injury in the Lungs of Mice

Selenium (Se) is a vital trace element in the regulation of inflammation and antioxidant reactions in both animals and humans. Se deficiency is rapidly affecting lung function. The present study investigated the molecular mechanism of Se deficiency aggravates reactive oxygen species (ROS)-induced inflammation, leading to fibrosis in lung. Mice fed with different concentrations of Se to establish the model. In the Se-deficient group, the ROS and malondialdehyde (MDA) was increased, and the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), and catalase (CAT) reduced. The histopathological observation showed that Se deficiency lead to lung texture damage with varying degrees of degeneration, necrosis, shedding of some alveolar epithelial cells, and inflammatory cell infiltration. Immunohistochemistry showed that the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) increased. The fibrosis index was verified with Sirius red staining. The ELISA and qPCR results showed that the inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-1β) and ECM (collagen I, collagen IV, fibronectin, and laminin) were increased with ROS increasing, which was induced by Se deficiency. The results displayed that oxidative stress with Se deficiency led to an increase in tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase (TIMPs), but a decrease in matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). All the results indicated that Se deficiency induced excessive ROS accumulation to generate inflammation, which disrupted ECM homeostasis and aggravated fibrosis in the lung.

Particulate matter in poultry house on poultry respiratory disease: a systematic review

Particulate matter (PM) is one of the essential environmental stressors for the poultry industry in the world. Given its large specific surface area, PM can adsorb and carry a variety of pollutants, including heavy metal ions, ammonia, and persistent organic pollutants such as pathogenic microorganisms. High concentrations of PM induce poultry respiratory inflammation and trigger various diseases. However, the pathogenic mechanism of PM in poultry houses on respiratory diseases has not been clarified due to its complexity and lack of accurate assays. In terms of pathogenesis, there are 3 ways to explain this phenomenon: Inhaled PM irritates the respiratory tract, decreases immune resistance, and causes a respiratory disease; respiratory tract irritation by compounds presents in PM; infections with pathogenic and non-pathogenic microorganisms attached to PM. The latter 2 modes of influence are more harmful. Specifically, PM can induce the respiratory disease through several toxic mechanisms, including ammonia ingestion and bioaccumulation, lung flora dysbiosis, oxidative stress, and metabolic disorders. Therefore, this review summarizes the characteristics of PM in the poultry house and the impact of poultry PM on respiratory disease and proposes potential pathogenic mechanisms.

Roles of selenoprotein K in oxidative stress and endoplasmic reticulum stress under selenium deficiency in chicken liver

Selenoprotein K (SELENOK) is a major part of selenoprotein family. Selenoproteins have been proven playing vital roles in a variety of physiological processes. However, as a necessary supplement to the body of trace elements, how SELENOK regulates necroptosis in chicken liver has none clear claim. The purpose of this study was to cover the mechanism of SELENOK act in necroptosis of chicken liver. By feeding Se-deficiency diet for 1-day-old hyline chickens, we successfully built SELENOK-deficiency and discussed the regulation SELENOK have done. The test of liver function showed there has dysfunction appeared in the -Se groups. Results of TEM showed necroptosis occurred in the 35-Se group. After that western blot and qRT-PCR results prompted us SELENOK-deficiency caused large accumulation of ROS, enhanced endoplasmic reticulum stress, abnormally elevated HSPs family expression, and activated RIPK1-RIPK3 complex. In order to show the regulation of SELENOK in chicken liver, we artificially knocked off SELENOK gene in LMH cells. Through AO/EB staining we also found necroptosis in the siRNA-Se group. Furthermore, the results in LMH cells were coincided with those in chicken (Gallus gallus) liver. Our experiment clarified the molecular mechanism of SELENOK in the regulation and liver necroptosis, and provided reference for the healthy feeding mode of broilers.

Zinc Deficiency Induces Inflammation and Apoptosis via Oxidative Stress in the Kidneys of Mice

Zinc (Zn) is an essential element that regulates not only cellular immunity but also antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents. The present study investigated the effect of Zn deficiency on renal cell apoptosis and its mechanism. A Zn-deficient kidney model in mice was created by a Zn-deficient diet. Mice were fed diets with different Zn levels for 41 days as follows: normal-Zn group (NG, 34 mg Zn/kg), low-Zn group (LG, 2 mg Zn/kg), and high-Zn group (HG, 100 mg Zn/kg). H&E staining showed that inflammatory cells and many erythrocytes exuded in the renal tissue space of the low-Zn group, and TUNEL staining indicated massive death of kidney cells in the low-Zn group. In the low-Zn group, the levels of oxygen free radicals (ROS) were significantly increased, the antioxidants were significantly decreased, and the total antioxidant capacity was decreased. Moreover, RT-qPCR and ELISA results showed that inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) were significantly increased in the low-Zn group. In addition, the levels of p-IκBα, p-NF-κB p65, p-ERK, p-JNK, and p-p38 were significantly increased in the low-Zn group, indicating that zinc deficiency activates NF-κB and MAPK signalling as well as increases its expression. RT-qPCR analysis of apoptosis-related genes, including Bcl-2 Bax, Caspa8, Caspa6, and Caspa3, demonstrated that the expression levels of proapoptotic genes in mouse kidneys were significantly increased. Importantly, the in vitro results were consistent with the in vivo results. Together, these data suggested that zinc deficiency induces renal oxidative stress to activate NF-κB and MAPK signalling, thereby inducing renal cell apoptosis.

Decreased thioredoxin reductase 3 expression promotes nickel-induced damage to cardiac tissue via activating oxidative stress-induced apoptosis and inflammation

Thioredoxin reductase 3 (Txnrd3) plays a crucial role in antioxidant and anti-cancer activities, and sperm maturation. The damage of heavy metals, including Nickel (Ni), is the most prominent harm in social development, and hampering Txnrd3 might exacerbate Ni-induced cardiac damage. In this study, a total of 160 8-week-old C57BL/N male mice with 25-30 g weight of Txnrd3+/+ wild-type and Txnrd3-/- homozygote-type were randomly divided into eight groups. The mice in the control and Ni groups were gavaged with distilled water and a freshly prepared 10 mg/kg NiCl₂ solution. Melatonin (Mel) groups were administered at a concentration of 2 mg/kg for 21 days at the mice's 0.1 ml/10 g body weight. Ni exposure up-regulated the messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of mitochondrial apoptosis (caspase-3, caspase-9, cytochrome c, p53, and BAX), autophagy (LC3, ATG 1, ATG 7, and Beclin-1), and inflammation (TNF-α, COX 2, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6, and IL-7)-related markers, but down-regulated the mRNA levels of BCL-2, p62 and mTOR (p < .05). Ni exposure decreased the expression of BCL-2 and p62 protein but increased the expression levels of caspase-3, caspase-9, cytochrome c, p53, BAX, ATG 7, Beclin-1, TNF-α, COX 2, IL-1β and IL-2 protein (p < .05). Ni increased the contents of glutathione disulfide (GSSG) and malondialdehyde (MDA) and decreased the activities of catalase (CAT) and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) (p < .05). Decreased Txnrd3 expression significantly exacerbated changes compared to the Ni exposure (p < .05). Mel significantly attenuated these changes, but the effect decreased when Txnrd3 was inhibited (p < .05). In conclusion, decreased Txnrd3 expression promoted Ni-induced mitochondrial apoptosis and inflammation via oxidative stress and aggravated heart damage in mice. Decreased Txnrd3 expression significantly reduced the protective effect of Mel to Ni exposure.

Tannic acid antagonizes atrazine exposure-induced autophagy and DNA damage crosstalk in grass carp hepatocytes via NO/iNOS/NF-κB signaling pathway to maintain stable immune function

Atrazine (ATR) is a herbicide widely used in grass crops. The pollution of the soil and water environment is extremely harmful to aquatic animals and their offspring. iNOS/NO upregulation, DNA damage and cellular autophagy affect the immune function of fish liver cells. The effects of ATR at exposure doses on grass carp hepatocytes in terms of autophagy and DNA damage effects in genotoxicity, as well as the antagonistic effects of TAN on the above phenotypes and the internal mechanisms are not known. Therefore, we constructed control (Con group), ATR exposure (ATR group), TAN exposure (TAN group) and mixed group (ATR + TAN group) models on grass carp hepatocytes. Validation was performed by comet assay, MDC staining, qRT-PCR and protein blotting assay as well as iNOS/NO indicator levels and expression of immune factors as these experimental methods. Our data indicate that iNOS/NO assay kit measured that ATR treatment resulted in a significant increase in iNOS/NO activity and levels in grass carp hepatocytes (p < 0.05). We also found that NO/iNOS/NF-κB pathway genes were significantly activated (p < 0.05) at the exposure dose of ATR (3 μg mL-1). In addition, the proportion of cells that died due to DNA damage, autophagy, and immunotoxic effects was significantly increased at the exposure dose of ATR. Comet assay protein blotting detected increased DNA damage in cells at the ATR exposure dose (p < 0.05). MDC staining and qRT-PCR and protein blotting to detect the proportion of autophagic cells and autophagy-related genes also appeared upregulated at the exposed dose of ATR (p < 0.05). In brief, this study showed that ATR exposure caused cellular DNA damage and autophagy via the NO/iNOS/NF-κB axis, which led to immunotoxic effects and eventual death of grass carp hepatocytes. The present study facilitates the demonstration of the molecular mechanism of TAN alleviation of ATR cytotoxicity from the perspective of NO-mediated iNOS/NF-κB axis. It provides insights into the protection of farmed fish from agricultural contaminants and opens up new horizons in the use of natural plant-derived monomers for the clinical treatment of antagonistic triazine pesticide poisoning.

Hexavalent Chromium Exposure Induces Intestinal Barrier Damage via Activation of the NF-κB Signaling Pathway and NLRP3 Inflammasome in Ducks

Hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] is a dangerous heavy metal which can impair the gastrointestinal system in various species; however, the processes behind Cr(VI)-induced intestinal barrier damage are unknown. Forty-eight healthy 1-day-old ducks were stochastically assigned to four groups and fed a basal ration containing various Cr(VI) dosages for 49 days. Results of the study suggested that Cr(VI) exposure could significantly increase the content of Cr(VI) in the jejunum, increase the level of diamine oxidase (DAO) in serum, affect the production performance, cause histological abnormalities (shortening of the intestinal villi, deepening of the crypt depth, reduction and fragmentation of microvilli) and significantly reduced the mRNA levels of intestinal barrier-related genes (ZO-1, occludin, claudin-1, and MUC2) and protein levels of ZO-1, occludin, cand laudin-1, resulting in intestinal barrier damage. Furthermore, Cr(VI) intake could increase the contents of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-18 (IL-18) but decrease the activities of total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione reductase (GR), as well as up-regulate the mRNA levels of TLR4, MyD88, NF-κB, TNFα, IL-6, NLRP3, caspase-1, ASC, IL-1β, and IL-18 and protein levels of TLR4, MyD88, NF-κB, NLRP3, caspase-1, ASC, IL-1β, and IL-18 in the jejunum. In conclusion, Cr(VI) could cause intestinal oxidative damage and inflammation in duck jejunum by activating the NF-κB signaling pathway and the NLRP3 inflammasome.

Autophagy flux inhibition mediated by lysosomal dysfunction participates in the cadmium exposure-induced cardiotoxicity in swine

Cadmium (Cd), a common toxic heavy metal, is believed as a risk factor for the induction and progression of cardiovascular disease. Autophagy is a highly ordered intracellular lysosomal-mediated degradation pathway that is crucial for protein and organelle quality control. Autophagy dysfunction could develop exacerbated cardiac dysfunction. However, the role of autophagy in Cd exposure-induced cardiotoxicity remains largely unknown. In this study, the Cd-induced swine cardiotoxicity model was established by feeding with a CdCl₂ suppled diet (20 mg Cd/kg diet). The results showed that Cd exposure increased the expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress-related genes (GRP78, GRP94, IRE1, XBP1, PERK, ATF4, and ATF6), increased the expression of Ca²⁺ release channels IP3R and RYR1 and decreased the expression of Ca²⁺ uptake pump SERCA1. Cd exposure upregulated the expression of autophagy-related genes (CAMKKII, AMPK, ATG5, ATG7, ATG12, Beclin1, LC3-II, and P62) and downregulated mTOR expression. Cd exposure inhibited the expression of V-ATPase and cathepsins (CTSB and CTSD), and increased the expression of cathepsins in cytoplasm. Cd exposure decreased the colocalization of autophagosome and lysosome. This study revealed that autophagy flux inhibition caused by lysosomal dysfunction participates in the cardiotoxicity induced by Cd exposure in swine.

Interfering TUG1 Attenuates Cerebrovascular Endothelial Apoptosis and Inflammatory injury After Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion via TUG1/miR-410/FOXO3 ceRNA Axis

Background Emerging studies illustrate that long non-coding RNA TUG1 (TUG1) participates in neuron death after ischemia. However, the role of TUG1 in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (CI/R) injury through cerebrovascular pathology was undetermined yet. Methods Expression of TUG1, miRNA-410-3p (miR-410), and forkhead box O3 (FOXO3) was detected by RT-qPCR and western blot. Neural function, apoptosis, and inflammatory damage were assessed by triphenyltetrazolium chloride straining, modified neurological severity score, fluorescence-activated cell sorting method, and western blot. The relationship among TUG1, miR-410, and FOXO3 was identified by dual-luciferase reporter assay, RNA pull-down, and RNA immunoprecipitation. Results TUG1 was upregulated in middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) mice and oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R)-induced mouse brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs) in a certain of time-dependent manner. Blockage of TUG1 decreased infarct volume and increased neurological score in MCAO/R mice, accompanied with elevated Bcl-2 expression and declined expression of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, Bax, and cleaved caspase 3. Abovementioned proteins were similarly expressed in OGD/R-induced BMECs with TUG1 knockdown, paralleled with diminished apoptosis rate. Either, miR-410 overexpression and FOXO3 interference could suppress OGD/R-induced inflammatory and apoptotic responses. Of note, TUG1 and FOXO3 are competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) for miR-410 via target binding. Depleting miR-410 counteracted the role of TUG1 exhaustion, and reinforcing FOXO3 abated the effect of miR-410 overexpression. Conclusion Exhausting TUG1 could alleviate CI/R-induced inflammatory injury and apoptosis in brain tissues and BMECs via targeting miR-410/FOXO3 axis, suggesting an innovative perspective from cerebrovascular endothelial cells in the pathogenesis and treatment of CI/R.