Tanshinone IIA Ameliorates Inflammation Response in Osteoarthritis via Inhibition of miR-155/FOXO3 Axis

The role of ferroptosis in osteoarthritis: Progress and prospects

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent degenerative joint disease, marked by cartilage degeneration, synovitis, and subchondral bone changes. The absence of effective drugs and treatments to decelerate OA's progression highlights a significant gap in clinical practice. Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent cell death driven by lipid peroxidation, has emerged as a research focus in osteoarthritic chondrocytes. This form of cell death is characterized by imbalances in iron and increased lipid peroxidation within osteoarthritic chondrocytes. Key antioxidant mechanisms, such as Glutathione Peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and the Nuclear Factor Erythroid 2-Related Factor 2 (NRF2) pathway, are vital in countering ferroptosis in osteoarthritic chondrocytes. This review collates recent findings on ferroptosis in osteoarthritic chondrocytes, emphasizing iron regulation, lipid peroxidation, and antioxidative responses. It also explores emerging therapeutics aimed at mitigating OA by targeting ferroptosis in chondrocytes.

Genetic Signature of a Healthy Lifestyle: New Horizons for Preventing Noncommunicable Chronic Diseases by Modulating MicroRNA-155

The development and progression of several noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are associated with microRNA (miR) 155 (miR-155) activation, which promotes inflammation and oxidative stress. In particular, miR-155 regulates nuclear transcription factor-kappa B (NF-κB) by silencing gene expression of proteins involved in NF-κB suppression, such as suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) and SH-2 containing inositol 5' polyphosphate 1 (SHIP1), increases the production of reactive oxygen species, and suppresses gene expression of antioxidant enzymes through nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) inhibition. In this context, a healthy lifestyle based on a diet rich in nutrients and bioactive compounds as well as regular physical activity may modulate the activity of several miRs. Following this concept, studies involving nutrients, bioactive compounds, and physical activity have been developed to modulate miR-155 activation. This narrative review aims to discuss how a healthy lifestyle based on a diet rich in nutrients, bioactive compounds, and physical activity may modulate the miR-155 pathway and consequently prevent the development and progression of NCDs. Nutrients and bioactive compounds from food may act by inhibiting pathways that promote miR-155 activation such as NF-κB and promote activation of pathways that are associated with the downregulation of miR-155, such as Nrf2, and SOCS1 pathways. Regular physical activity also seems to influence miR-155 levels through an improvement in the immune system during muscle recovery. There is relevant evidence that shows a positive effect of nutrients, bioactive compounds, and physical activity with the modulation of miR-155, which can potentially provide benefits in the clinical setting in cases of NCDs.

The PIEZO1/miR-155-5p/GDF6/SMAD2/3 signaling axis is involved in inducing the occurrence and progression of osteoarthritis under excessive mechanical stress

OBJECTIVE

To elucidate the molecular mechanism of overloading-induced osteoarthritis (OA) and to find a novel therapeutic target.

METHODS

We utilized human cartilage specimens, mouse chondrocytes, a destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) mouse model, and a mouse hindlimb weight-bearing model to validate the role of overloading on chondrocyte senescence and OA development. Then, we observed the effect of PIEZO1-miR-155-5p-GDF6-SMAD2/3 signaling axis on the preservation of joint metabolic homeostasis under overloading in vivo, in vitro and ex vivo by qPCR, Western blot, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, SA-β-gal staining, CCK8 assay, et al. Finally, we verified the therapeutic effects of intra-articular injection of miR-155-5p inhibitor or recombinant GDF6 on the murine overloading-induced OA models.

RESULTS

Chondrocytes sensesed the mechanical overloading through PIEZO1 and up-regulated miR-155-5p expression. MiR-155-5p mimics could copy the effects of overloading-induced chondrocyte senescence and OA. Additionally, miR-155-5p could suppress the mRNA expression of Gdf6-Smad2/3 in various tissues within the joint. Overloading could disrupt joint metabolic homeostasis by downregulating the expression of anabolism indicators and upregulating the expression of catabolism indicators in the chondrocytes and synoviocytes, while miR-155-5p inhibition or GDF6 supplementation could exert an antagonistic effect by preserving the joint homeostasis. Finally, in the in vivo overloading models, intra-articular injection of miR-155-5p inhibitor or recombinant GDF6 could significantly mitigate the severity of impending OA and lessened the progression of existing OA.

CONCLUSION

GDF6 overexpression or miR-155-5p inhibition could attenuate overloading-induced chondrocyte senescence and OA through the PIEZO1-miR-155-5p-GDF6-SMAD2/3 signaling pathway. Our study provides a new therapeutic target for the treatment of overloading-induced OA.

Tanshinone IIA attenuates osteoarthritis via inhibiting aberrant angiogenesis in subchondral bone

Excessive angiogenesis in subchondral bone is a pathological feature of osteoarthritis (OA). Tanshinone IIA (TIIA), an active compound found in Salvia miltiorrhiza, demonstrates significant anti-angiogenic properties. However, the effect of TIIA on abnormal subchondral angiogenesis in OA is still unclear. This study aims to investigate the mechanism of TIIA in modulating subchondral bone angiogenesis during OA and assess its therapeutic potential in OA. Our findings demonstrate that TIIA attenuated articular cartilage degeneration, normalized subchondral bone remodeling, and effectively suppressed aberrant angiogenesis within subchondral bone in monosodium iodoacetate (MIA)-induced OA mice. Additionally, the angiogenesis capacity of primary CD31hiEmcnhi endothelial cells was observed to be significantly reduced after treatment with TIIA in vitro. Mechanically, TIIA diminished the proportion of hypertrophic chondrocytes, ultimately leading to a substantial reduction in the secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA). The supernatant of hypertrophic chondrocytes promoted the tube formation of CD31hiEMCNhi endothelial cells, whereas TIIA inhibited this process. Furthermore, TIIA effectively suppressed the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) along with its downstream MAPK pathway in CD31hiEmcnhi endothelial cells. In conclusion, our data indicated that TIIA could effectively inhibit the abnormal angiogenesis in subchondral bone during the progression of OA by suppressing the VEGFA/VEFGR2/MAPK pathway. These findings significantly contribute to our understanding of the abnormal angiogenesis in OA and offer a promising therapeutic target for OA treatment.

Expanding the therapeutic potential of Salvia miltiorrhiza: a review of its pharmacological applications in musculoskeletal diseases

Salvia miltiorrhiz, commonly known as "Danshen" in Chinese medicine, has longstanding history of application in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Renowned for its diverse therapeutic properties, including promoting blood circulation, removing blood stasis, calming the mind, tonifying the blood, and benefiting the "Qi", recent studies have revealed its significant positive effects on bone metabolism. This potential has garnered attention for its promising role in treating musculoskeletal disorders. Consequently, there is a high anticipation for a comprehensive review of the potential of Salvia miltiorrhiza in the treatment of various musculoskeletal diseases, effectively introducing an established traditional Chinese medicine into a burgeoning field.

AIM OF THE REVIEW

Musculoskeletal diseases (MSDs) present significant challenges to healthcare systems worldwide. Previous studies have demonstrated the high efficacy and prospects of Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients for treatment of MSDs. This review aims to illuminate the newfound applications of Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients in the treatment of various MSDs, effectively bridging the gap between an established medicine and an emerging field.

METHODS

In this review, previous studies related to Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients on the treatment of MSD were collected, the specific active ingredients of Salvia miltiorrhiza were summarized, the effects of Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients for the treatment of MSDs, as well as their potential molecular mechanisms were reviewed and discussed.

RESULTS

Based on previous publications, Salvianolic acid A, salvianolic acid B, tanshinone IIA are the representative active ingredients of Salvia miltiorrhiza. Their application has shown significant beneficial outcomes in osteoporosis, fractures, and arthritis. Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients protect against MSDs by regulating different signaling pathways, including ROS, Wnt, MAPK, and NF-κB signaling.

CONCLUSION

Salvia miltiorrhiza and its active ingredients demonstrate promising potential for bone diseases and have been explored across a wide variety of MSDs. Further exploration of Salvia miltiorrhiza's pharmacological applications in MSDs holds great promise for advancing therapeutic interventions and improving the lives of patients suffering from these diseases.

ETS2 overexpression ameliorates cartilage injury in osteoarthritis by the ETS2/miR-155/STAT1/DNMT1 feedback loop pathway

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common irreversible chronic joint dysfunction disease, which is pathologically characterized by disturbance of articular cartilage homeostasis leading to subsequent inflammatory response and cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation. Increasing evidence has demonstrated the dysregulation of transcription factors play crucial roles in the occurrence and development of osteoarthritis (OA), but the potential functions and mechanism of most transcription factors in OA has not been completely illuminated. In this study, we identified that transcription factor V-ets erythroblastosis virus E26 oncogene homolog 2 (ETS2) was significantly down-regulated in OA cartilage and IL-1β-induced OA chondrocytes. Functional experiments in vitro demonstrated that the overexpressed ETS2 strikingly enhanced proliferation, outstandingly suppressed apoptosis, and dramatically reduced inflammation and ECM degradation in IL-1β-induced OA chondrocytes, whereas the knockdown of ETS2 led to the opposite effects. Further in vivo studies have shown that up-regulated ETS2 dramatically ameliorates cartilage injury in DMM-induced OA mice. Mechanical studies have disclosed that DNMT1-mediated downregulation of ETS2 dramatically promotes STAT1 by inhibiting miR-155 transcription, and increased STAT1 initiates a feedback loop that may enhance DNMT1-mediated hypermethylation of ETS2 to inhibit ETS2 expression, thus forming a DNMT1/ETS2/miR-155/STAT1 feedback loop that inhibits MAPK signaling pathways and aggravates OA cartilage injury. In all, our results revealed that overexpression of ETS2 markedly ameliorated OA cartilage injury through the ETS2/miR-155/STAT1/DNMT1 feedback loop, providing a new perspective on the pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies for OA.

TanshinoneIIA inhibits melanocyte pyroptosis by regulating the ROS/NLRP3 signaling axis

BACKGROUND

Pyroptosis has been implicated in the development of human diseases, including vitiligo. TanshinoneIIA has been confirmed to play anti-vitiligo role. However, whether tanshinoneIIA inhibits vitiligo progression via regulating cell pyroptosis remains unclear.

METHODS

Hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 )-induced melanocytes were used to mimic vitiligo cell model in vitro. Cell viability was assessed by cell counting kit 8 assay, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was detected by DCFH-DA staining. Nod-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) expression was detected by quantitative real-time PCR, western blot and immunofluorescence staining. Cell pyroptosis was measured using flow cytometry, and the contents of interleukin-1β and interleukin-18 were determined by ELISA. Besides, the protein levels of apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing CARD (ASC) and cleaved-Caspase-1 were examined by western blot analysis.

RESULTS

H2 O2 could induce ROS production, NLRP3 expression and pyroptosis in melanocytes. TanshinoneIIA inhibited ROS production, pyroptosis, and the expression of NLRP3, ASC and cleaved-caspase-1 in H2 O2 -induced melanocytes. Compared with the function of ROS inhibitor (NAC), tanshinoneIIA acted as a ROS scavenger to relieve melanocyte pyroptosis. In addition, NLRP3 inhibitor (MCC950) also could aggravate the inhibition effect of tanshinoneIIA on melanocyte pyroptosis.

CONCLUSION

TanshinoneIIA suppressed melanocyte pyroptosis probably through modulating the ROS/NLRP3 signaling axis, which provides the evidence for therapeutic effect in vitiligo.

Tanshinone IIA alleviates chondrocyte apoptosis and extracellular matrix degeneration by inhibiting ferroptosis

Articular cartilage degeneration caused by chondrocyte damage is the primary pathological mechanism of osteoarthritis (OA). Oxidative stress is correlated with chondrocyte injury by potentiating ferroptosis, a newly identified form of cell death. Given the effects of Tanshinone IIA (Tan IIA) on alleviating oxidative stress, we further explored whether Tan IIA inhibited chondrocyte death and cartilage degeneration by decreasing ferroptosis. ATDC5 chondrocytes were treated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and Tan IIA, and cell viability was assessed using cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assays. Matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP13), a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motif-5 (ADAMTS5), and type II collagen (Col II) levels were measured using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‒PCR), western blotting, and immunofluorescence (IF) analysis. We demonstrated that Tan IIA treatment prominently increased ATDC5 cell viability and decreased cell apoptosis in the presence of LPS-induced stress. MMP13 and ADAMTS5 expression was increased, and Col II expression was decreased in ATDC5 cells after LPS stimulation, whereas these changes were reversed by Tan IIA. Mechanistically, Tan IIA inhibited LPS-induced ferroptosis in ATDC5 cells, as indicated by decreased levels of iron, reactive oxygen species, and malondialdehyde and increased GSH levels. Importantly, a ferroptosis agonist partially abrogated the effect of Tan IIA on alleviating chondrocyte damage and death. Taken together, these results suggest that Tan IIA ameliorates chondrocyte apoptosis and cartilage degeneration by inhibiting ferroptosis and may be a potential therapeutic agent for OA.

Tanshinone IIA and Cryptotanshinone Counteract Inflammation by Regulating Gene and miRNA Expression in Human SGBS Adipocytes

Inflammation of the adipose tissue contributes to the onset and progression of several chronic obesity-related diseases. The two most important lipophilic diterpenoid compounds found in the root of Salvia milthorrhiza Bunge (also called Danshen), tanshinone IIA (TIIA) and cryptotanshinone (CRY), have many favorable pharmacological effects. However, their roles in obesity-associated adipocyte inflammation and related sub-networks have not been fully elucidated. In the present study, we investigated the gene, miRNAs and protein expression profile of prototypical obesity-associated dysfunction markers in inflamed human adipocytes treated with TIIA and CRY. The results showed that TIIA and CRY prevented tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α induced inflammatory response in adipocytes, by counter-regulating the pattern of secreted cytokines/chemokines associated with adipocyte inflammation (CCL2/MCP-1, CXCL10/IP-10, CCL5/RANTES, CXCL1/GRO-α, IL-6, IL-8, MIF and PAI-1/Serpin E1) via the modulation of gene expression (as demonstrated for CCL2/MCP-1, CXCL10/IP-10, CCL5/RANTES, CXCL1/GRO-α, and IL-8), as well as related miRNA expression (miR-126-3p, miR-223-3p, miR-124-3p, miR-155-5p, and miR-132-3p), and by attenuating monocyte recruitment. This is the first demonstration of a beneficial effect by TIIA and CRY on adipocyte dysfunction associated with obesity development and complications, offering a new outlook for the prevention and/or treatment of metabolic diseases.

Methylation Mediated Silencing of miR-155 Suppresses the Development of Preeclampsia In Vitro and In Vivo by Targeting FOXO3

Preeclampsia (PE) is a common pregnancy-related syndrome characterized by chronic immune activation. This study is aimed at exploring the role of miR-155 in the inflammatory pathogenesis of PE. Placental tissues and peripheral blood were collected from all subjects. BSP detection analysis was performed to evaluate miR-155 methylation levels. ELISA was performed to measure the levels of inflammatory cytokines and MMP2 in serum samples and cellular supernatants. HTR-8/SVneo and JEG-3 cells were transfected with miR-155 mimic and the inhibitor to establish the overexpressed miR-155 and silenced miR-155 cell models, respectively. Treatment with 5-Aza was performed to alter the DNA methylation level of miR-155. The PE rat model was established after subcutaneous injection of NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester. The CCK-8 assay, TUNEL staining, and Transwell assay were performed. Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemical assay were used to analyze related gene expression levels. The luciferase reporter assay was used to investigate the direct interaction between FOXO3 and miR-155. Results showed that miR-155 was remarkably upregulated and inversely correlated with the promoter methylation level in the placental tissue from PE patients. The in vitro experiments indicated that miR-155 decreased viability, migration, and invasion, but increased apoptosis in trophoblast cells. FOXO3 was confirmed as the target of miR-155. Transfection of the miR-155 inhibitor suppressed inflammation and oxidative stress, but elevated proliferation, migration, and invasion of trophoblast cells, which were abolished by 5-Aza treatment or cotransfection with si-FOXO3. In summary, our data suggested that methylation-mediated silencing of miR-155 can inhibit the apoptosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress of trophoblast cells by upregulating FOXO3.

miR-155 inhibits chondrocyte pyroptosis in knee osteoarthritis by targeting SMAD2 and inhibiting the NLRP3/Caspase-1 pathway

Objective

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is based on degenerative pathological changes. miR-155 is involved in regulating KOA. This study estimated the mechanism of miR-155 in mouse KOA chondrocytes.

Methods

Mouse KOA chondrocyte model was established by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induction and identified through Collagen II immunofluorescence staining and toluidine blue staining. LPS-induced KOA chondrocytes were transfected with miR-155 inhibitor or/and si-SMAD2, followed by the evaluation of miR-155 expression, pyroptosis, the SMAD2/NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis-related protein levels, IL-1β and 1L-18 levels, and cell viability by RT-qPCR, FAM-FLICA Caspase-1 Detection Kit, Western blot, ELISA, and MTT assays, respectively. The binding sites between miR-155 and SMAD2 were predicted online and the binding relationship was verified by dual-luciferase assay.

Results

miR-155 was highly-expressed in LPS-induced KOA chondrocytes. miR-155 knockdown increased cell viability and decreased pyroptotic chondrocytes, and Caspase-1, 1L-1β and 1L-18 levels. miR-155 targeted SMAD2. SMAD2 knockdown partially annulled the effects of miR-155 silencing on inhibiting KOA chondrocyte pyroptosis. NLRP3 pathway was activated in LPS-induced KOA chondrocytes, inhibited after miR-155 knockdown, and activated again after further SMAD2 knockdown. NLRP3 inhibition suppressed Caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 levels and chondrocyte pyroptosis and increased cell viability.

Conclusion

miR-155 knockdown inhibited the NLRP3/Caspase-1 pathway by targeting SMAD2, thus inhibiting mouse KOA chondrocyte pyroptosis.