miR‑125a‑5p and miR‑7 inhibits the proliferation, migration and invasion of vascular smooth muscle cell by targeting EGFR

Establishment of a placental lncRNA-mRNA expression network for early-onset preeclampsia

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to establish a placental long non-coding RNA (lncRNA)-mRNA expression network for early-onset preeclampsia (early-onset PE).

METHODS

The RNA sequencing data of the GSE14821 dataset were acquired. Several crucial lncRNAs and mRNAs were exerted based on the differential expression analysis of lncRNA and mRNA. By analyzing the differentially expressed lncRNA and mRNA, we constructed a regulatory network to explore the mechanism of the lncRNA in early onset preeclampsia.

RESULTS

A total of 4436 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) were identified in early-onset PE placenta samples compared with control placenta samples. Pearson correlation analysis revealed significant correlations between 3659 DElncRNAs and 372 DEmRNAs. KEGG analysis showed that the DEmRNAs were enriched in cytokine-cytokine receptor and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1 pathways. Several well-known early-onset PE-related mRNAs, such as vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) and VEGF receptor 1 (FLT1), were involved in the two pathways. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis and cis-regulatory analysis further suggested the involvement of the two pathways and potential DElncRNA-DEmRNA interactions in early-onset PE. Moreover, the upregulation of representative DElncRNAs, such as RP11-211G3.3 and RP11-65J21.3, and DEmRNAs, such as VEGFA and FLT1, were validated in clinical placenta samples from patients with early-onset PE by quantitative reverse transcription PCR. Importantly, overexpression of RP11-65J21.3 significantly promoted the proliferation of HTR-8 trophoblast cells at 72 h after transfection.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, we identified placental DElncRNAs of early-onset PE and established a DElncRNA-DEmRNA network that was closely related to the cytokine-cytokine receptor and HIF-1 pathways. Our results provide potential diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for early-onset PE management.

The Role of microRNAs in Inflammation

Inflammation is a biological response of the immune system to various insults, such as pathogens, toxic compounds, damaged cells, and radiation. The complex network of pro- and anti-inflammatory factors and their direction towards inflammation often leads to the development and progression of various inflammation-associated diseases. The role of small non-coding RNAs (small ncRNAs) in inflammation has gained much attention in the past two decades for their regulation of inflammatory gene expression at multiple levels and their potential to serve as biomarkers and therapeutic targets in various diseases. One group of small ncRNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs), has become a key regulator in various inflammatory disease conditions. Their fine-tuning of target gene regulation often turns out to be an important factor in controlling aberrant inflammatory reactions in the system. This review summarizes the biogenesis of miRNA and the mechanisms of miRNA-mediated gene regulation. The review also briefly discusses various pro- and anti-inflammatory miRNAs, their targets and functions, and provides a detailed discussion on the role of miR-10a in inflammation.

Dissecting miRNA–Gene Networks to Map Clinical Utility Roads of Pharmacogenomics-Guided Therapeutic Decisions in Cardiovascular Precision Medicine

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) create systems networks and gene-expression circuits through molecular signaling and cell interactions that contribute to health imbalance and the emergence of cardiovascular disorders (CVDs). Because the clinical phenotypes of CVD patients present a diversity in their pathophysiology and heterogeneity at the molecular level, it is essential to establish genomic signatures to delineate multifactorial correlations, and to unveil the variability seen in therapeutic intervention outcomes. The clinically validated miRNA biomarkers, along with the relevant SNPs identified, have to be suitably implemented in the clinical setting in order to enhance patient stratification capacity, to contribute to a better understanding of the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms, to guide the selection of innovative therapeutic schemes, and to identify innovative drugs and delivery systems. In this article, the miRNA–gene networks and the genomic signatures resulting from the SNPs will be analyzed as a method of highlighting specific gene-signaling circuits as sources of molecular knowledge which is relevant to CVDs. In concordance with this concept, and as a case study, the design of the clinical trial GESS (NCT03150680) is referenced. The latter is presented in a manner to provide a direction for the improvement of the implementation of pharmacogenomics and precision cardiovascular medicine trials.

DR1 Activation Inhibits the Proliferation of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells through Increasing Endogenous H2S in Diabetes

Tissue ischemia and hypoxia caused by the abnormal proliferation of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in the diabetic state is an important pathological basis for diabetic microangiopathy. Studies in recent years have shown that the chronic complications of diabetes are related to the decrease of endogenous hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in diabetic patients, and it has been proven that H₂S can inhibit the proliferation of vascular SMCs (VSMCs). Our study showed that the endogenous H₂S content and the expression of cystathionine gamma-lyase (CSE), which is the key enzyme of H₂S production, were decreased in arterial SMCs of diabetic mice. The expression of PCNA and Cyclin D1 was increased, and the expression of p21 was decreased in the diabetic state. After administration of dopamine 1-like receptors (DR1) agonist SKF38393 and exogenous H₂S donor NaHS, the expression of CSE was increased and the change in proliferation-related proteins caused by diabetes was reversed. It was further verified by cell experiments that SKF38393 activated calmodulin (CaM) by increasing the intracellular calcium ([Ca²⁺]_i) concentration, which activated the CSE/H₂S pathway, enhancing the H₂S content in vivo. We also found that SKF38393 and NaHS inhibited insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1)/IGF-1R and heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor (HB-EGF)/EGFR, as well as their downstream PI3K/Akt, JAK2/STAT3 and ERK1/2 pathways. Taken together, our results suggest that DR1 activation up-regulates the CSE/H₂S system by increasing Ca²⁺-CaM binding, which inhibits the IGF-1/IGF-1R and HB-EGF/EGFR pathways, thereby decreasing their downstream PI3K/Akt, JAK2/STAT3 and ERK1/2 pathways to achieve the effect of inhibiting HG-induced VSMCs proliferation.

MiR-125 Family in Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases

Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are a serious threaten to the health of modern people. Understanding the mechanism of occurrence and development of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, as well as reasonable prevention and treatment of them, is a huge challenge that we are currently facing. The miR-125 family consists of hsa-miR-125a, hsa-miR-125b-1 and hsa-miR-125b-2. It is a kind of miRNA family that is highly conserved among different species. A large amount of literature shows that the lack of miR-125 can cause abnormal development of the cardiovascular system in the embryonic period. At the same time, the miR-125 family participates in the occurrence and development of a variety of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, including myocardial ischemia, atherosclerosis, ischemia-reperfusion injury, ischemic stroke, and heart failure directly or indirectly. In this article, we summarized the role of the miR-125 family in the development and maturation of cardiovascular system, the occurrence and development of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and its important value in the current fiery stem cell therapy. In addition, we presented this in the form of table and diagrams. We also discussed the difficulties and challenges faced by the miR-125 family in clinical applications.