miR-762 regulates the proliferation and differentiation of retinal progenitor cells by targeting NPDC1

Unraveling the role of Xist RNA in cardiovascular pathogenesis

Understanding the molecular pathways behind cardiovascular illnesses is crucial due to the enormous worldwide health burden they impose. New insights into the role played by Xist (X-inactive specific transcript) RNA in the onset and progression of cardiovascular diseases have emerged from recent studies. Since its discovery, Xist RNA has been known for its role in X chromosome inactivation during embryogenesis; however, new data suggest that its function extends well beyond the control of sex chromosomes. The regulatory roles of Xist RNA are extensive, encompassing epigenetic changes, gene expression, cellular identity, and sex chromosomal inactivation. There is potential for the involvement of this complex regulatory web in a wide range of illnesses, including cardiovascular problems. Atherosclerosis, hypertrophy, and cardiac fibrosis are all conditions linked to dysregulation of Xist RNA expression. Alterations in DNA methylation and histones are two examples of epigenetic changes that Xist RNA orchestrates, leading to modifications in gene expression patterns in different cardiovascular cells. Additionally, Xist RNA has been shown to contribute to the development of cardiovascular illnesses by modulating endothelial dysfunction, inflammation, and oxidative stress responses. New treatment approaches may become feasible with a thorough understanding of the complex function of Xist RNA in cardiovascular diseases. By focusing on Xist RNA and the regulatory network with which it interacts, we may be able to slow the progression of atherosclerosis, cardiac hypertrophy, and fibrosis, thereby opening novel therapeutic options for cardiovascular diseases amenable to precision medicine. This review summarizes the current state of knowledge concerning the impact of Xist RNA in cardiovascular disorders.

Correlation of NPDC1 Expression and Perineural Invasion Status with Clinicopathological Features in Patients with Colon Cancer

Background

Colon cancer is a prevalent gastrointestinal malignancy that often exhibits distant metastasis, hindering the effectiveness of surgical interventions. In addition to well-known hematogenous and lymphatic metastasis, perineural invasion (PNI) has emerged as a significant mode of distant metastasis in colon tumors. PNI is closely associated with oncologic pain in advanced cancer patients, but the underlying mechanisms and associated biomarkers, which might be the novel therapeutic targets, remain poorly understood.

Methods

In this study, we employed large databases and bioinformatics methods to identify genes strongly linked to PNI in colon cancer and investigated their involvement in tumor nerve invasion, progression mechanisms, and chemotherapy resistance. Immunohistochemical techniques were utilized to validate the expression of target genes in 384 colon cancer tissues, and their expression was correlated with clinicopathological characteristics and patient survival data in our hospital. Furthermore, we conducted a comprehensive literature review to explore the potential functions of the target genes and their associated genes.

Results

Our screening revealed a significant correlation between neural proliferation differentiation and control-1 (NPDC1) expression and patient prognosis, suggesting a potential association with neural infiltration in colon cancer. Additionally, NPDC1 may promote tumorigenesis, progression, and chemoresistance through various related pathways.

Conclusion

Our study provides novel insights into the utility of NPDC1 as a predictive marker for PNI status, disease-free survival, and overall survival in patients with colon cancer, highlighting the prevalence of NPDC1 overexpression in patients with PNI in colon cancer.

miR-124-3p regulates the proliferation and differentiation of retinal progenitor cells through SEPT10

Retinal degenerative diseases such as glaucoma, retinitis pigmentosa, and age-related macular degeneration pose serious threats to human visual health due to lack of effective therapeutic approaches. In recent years, the transplantation of retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) has shown increasing promise in the treatment of these diseases; however, the application of RPC transplantation is limited by both their poor proliferation and their differentiation capabilities. Previous studies have shown that microRNAs (miRNA) act as essential mediators in the fate determination of stem/progenitor cells. In this study, we hypothesized that miR-124-3p plays a regulatory role in the fate of RPC determination by targeting Septin10 (SEPT10) in vitro. We observed that the overexpression of miR124-3p downregulates SEPT10 expression in RPCs, leading to reduced RPC proliferation and increased differentiation, specifically towards both neurons and ganglion cells. Conversely, antisense knockdown of miR-124-3p was shown to boost SEPT10 expression, enhance RPC proliferation, and attenuate differentiation. Moreover, overexpression of SEPT10 rescued miR-124-3p-caused proliferation deficiency while weakening the enhancement of miR-124-3p-induced-RPC differentiation. Results from this study show that miR-124-3p regulates RPC proliferation and differentiation by targeting SEPT10. Furthermore, our findings enable a more comprehensive understanding into the mechanisms of proliferation and differentiation of RPC fate determination. Ultimately, this study may be useful for helping researchers and clinicians to develop more promising and effective approaches to optimize the use of RPCs in treating retinal degeneration diseases.

Combined Noncoding RNA-mRNA Regulomics Signature in Reprogramming and Pluripotency in iPSCs

Somatic cells are reprogrammed with reprogramming factors to generate induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), offering a promising future for disease modeling and treatment by overcoming the limitations of embryonic stem cells. However, this process remains inefficient since only a small percentage of transfected cells can undergo full reprogramming. Introducing miRNAs, such as miR-294 and miR302/3667, with reprogramming factors, has shown to increase iPSC colony formation. Previously, we identified five transcription factors, GBX2, NANOGP8, SP8, PEG3, and ZIC1, which may boost iPSC generation. In this study, we performed quantitative miRNAome and small RNA-seq sequencing and applied our previously identified transcriptome to identify the potential miRNA-mRNA regulomics and regulatory network of other ncRNAs. From each fibroblast (N = 4), three iPSC clones were examined (N = 12). iPSCs and original fibroblasts expressed miRNA clusters differently and miRNA clusters were compared to mRNA hits. Moreover, miRNA, piRNA, and snoRNAs expression profiles in iPSCs and original fibroblasts were assessed to identify the potential role of ncRNAs in enhancing iPSC generation, pluripotency, and differentiation. Decreased levels of let-7a-5p showed an increase of SP8 as described previously. Remarkably, the targets of identifier miRNAs were grouped into pluripotency canonical pathways, on stemness, cellular development, growth and proliferation, cellular assembly, and organization of iPSCs.

Potential Biomarkers and Drugs for Nanoparticle-Induced Cytotoxicity in the Retina: Based on Regulation of Inflammatory and Apoptotic Genes

The eye is a superficial organ directly exposed to the surrounding environment. Thus, the toxicity of nanoparticle (NP) pollutants to the eye may be potentially severer relative to inner organs and needs to be monitored. However, the cytotoxic mechanisms of NPs on the eyes remain rarely reported. This study was to screen crucial genes associated with NPs-induced retinal injuries. The gene expression profiles in the retina induced by NPs [GSE49371: Au20, Au100, Si20, Si100; GSE49048: presumptive therapeutic concentration (PTC) TiO₂, 10PTC TiO₂] and commonly used retinal cell injury models (optic nerve injury procedure: GSE55228, GSE120257 and GSE131486; hypoxia exposure: GSE173233, GSE151610, GSE135844; H₂O₂ exposure: GSE122270) were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 381 differentially expressed genes (including 372 mRNAs and 9 lncRNAs) were shared between NP exposure and the optic nerve injury model when they were compared with their corresponding controls. Function enrichment analysis of these overlapped genes showed that Tlr2, Crhbp, Ccl2, Cxcl10, Fas, Irf8, Socs3, Stat3, Gbp6, Casp1 and Syk were involved in inflammatory- and apoptotic-related processes. Protein-protein interaction network analysis revealed eight of them (Tlr2, Ccl2, Cxcl10, Irf8, Socs3, Stat3, Casp1 and Syk) were hub genes. Moreover, Socs3 could interact with upstream Stat3 and downstream Fas/Casp1/Ccl2/Cxcl10; Irf8 could interact with upstream Tlr2, Syk and downstream Cxcl10. Competing endogenous RNAs network analysis identified Socs3, Irf8, Gdf6 and Crhbp could be regulated by lncRNAs and miRNAs (9330175E14Rik-mmu-miR-762-Socs3, 6430562O15Rik-mmu-miR-207-Irf8, Gm9866-mmu-miR-669b-5p-Gdf6, 4933406C10Rik-mmu-miR-9-5p-Crhbp). CMap-CTD database analyses indicated the expression levels of Tlr2, Ccl2, Cxcl10, Fas, Irf8, Socs3, Stat3, Gbp6, Casp1 and Syk could be reversed by folic acid. Crhbp and Gdf6 were also verified to be downregulated, while Tlr2, Ccl2, Irf8, Socs3 and Stat3 were upregulated in hypoxia/H₂O₂-induced retinal injury models. Hereby, our findings suggest that Crhbp, Irf8, Socs3 and Gdf6 as well as their upstream mRNAs, lncRNAs and miRNAs may be potential monitoring biomarkers and therapeutic targets for NP-induced retinal injuries. Folic acid supplementation may be a preventive and therapeutic approach.

miR-381-3p Cooperated With Hes1 to Regulate the Proliferation and Differentiation of Retinal Progenitor Cells

Retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) transplantation has become a promising therapy for retinal degeneration, which is a major kind of ocular diseases causing blindness. Since RPCs have limited proliferation and differentiation abilities toward retinal neurons, it is urgent to resolve these problems. MicroRNAs have been reported to have vital effects on stem cell fate. In our study, the data showed that overexpression of miR-381-3p repressed Hes1 expression, which promoted RPCs differentiation, especially toward neuronal cells, and inhibited RPCs proliferation. Knockdown of endogenous miR-381-3p increased Hes1 expression to inhibit RPCs differentiation and promote proliferation. In addition, a luciferase assay demonstrated that miR-381-3p directly targeted the Hes1 3’ untranslated region (UTR). Taken together, our study demonstrated that miR-381-3p regulated RPCs proliferation and differentiation by targeting Hes1, which provides an experimental basis of RPCs transplantation therapy for retinal degeneration.