CircSERPINE2 protects against osteoarthritis by targeting miR-1271 and ETS-related gene.

OBJECTIVES: Circular RNAs (circRNA) expression aberration has been identified in various human diseases. In this study, we investigated whether circRNAs could act as competing endogenous RNAs to regulate the pathological process of osteoarthritis (OA). METHODS: CircRNA deep sequencing was performed to the expression of circRNAs between OA and control cartilage tissues. The regulatory and functional role of CircSERPINE2 upregulation was examined in OA and was validated in vitro and in vivo, downstream target of CircSERPINE2 was explored. RNA pull down, a luciferase reporter assay, biotin-coupled microRNA capture and fluorescence in situ hybridisation were used to evaluate the interaction between CircSERPINE2 and miR-1271-5 p, as well as the target mRNA, E26 transformation-specific-related gene (ERG). The role and mechanism of CircSERPINE2 in OA was also explored in rabbit models. RESULTS: The decreased expression of CircSERPINE2 in the OA cartilage tissues was directly associated with excessive apoptosis and imbalance between anabolic and catabolic factors of extracellular matrix (ECM). Mechanistically, CircSERPINE2 acted as a sponge of miR-1271-5 p and functioned in human chondrocytes (HCs) through targeting miR-1271-5 p and ERG. Intra-articular injection of adeno-associated virus-CircSERPINE2-wt alleviated OA in the rabbit model. CONCLUSIONS: Our results reveal an important role for a novel circRNA-CircSERPINE2 in OA progression. CircSERPINE2 overexpression could alleviate HCs apoptosis and promote anabolism of ECM through miR-1271-ERG pathway. It provides a potentially effective therapeutic strategy for OA progression.

Synthesis and characterization of site-specific and stereoisomeric fjord dibenzo[a,l]pyrene diol epoxide-N(6)-adenine adducts: unusual thermal stabilization of modified DNA duplexes.

The fjord polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compound dibenzo[a,l]pyrene (DB[a,l]P) is significantly more tumorigenic than the bay region benzo[a]pyrene in animal model systems. The molecular origins of the unusually strong genotoxic properties of DB[a,l]P and its fjord region diol epoxide metabolites are of great interest and are believed to be related to the structural characteristics of the DNA adducts formed. Site-specifically modified oligonucleotides were prepared by reacting the single adenine residue in 5'-d(CTCTCACTTCC) (I) with the racemic fjord diol epoxide r11,t12-dihydrodiol-t13,14-epoxide-11,12,13,14-tetrahydrodibenzo[a,l]pyrene (anti-DB[a,l]PDE) in aqueous solutions. Four different oligonucleotides I with the single adenosine residues involving a covalent bond between the C14 position of DB[a,l]PDE and N(6)-dA are identified and purified. The CD spectra of the mononucleotide adducts are similar to those of Li et al. [Li et al. (1999) Chem. Res. Toxicol. 12, 758] who characterized DB[a,l]PDE-N(6)-dA adducts by a combination of CD and NMR methods. The stereochemical properties of each of the four DB[a,l]PDE-modified oligonucleotides were assigned on the basis of a combination of empirical CD rules and other approaches and differ from those of Li et al. The thermal melting points, T(m), of the unmodified duplex of I with its complementary strand (IC), T(m) = 43.8 +/- 0.5 degrees C, were compared with the same duplexes containing stereoisomeric anti-DB[a,l]PDE-N(6)-dA lesions. The T(m) of duplexes I.IC containing lesions with R absolute configurations at C14 of the DB[a,l]PDE residues are greater by 6-8 degrees C, while those with S configuration are lower by 6-10 degrees C. Similar effects are observed with adducts in the same sequence context derived from the fjord PAH anti-diol epoxides of benzo[g]chrysene, while duplexes containing lesions derived from benzo[c]phenanthrene diol epoxides with 1R and 1S configurations exhibit unchanged T(m) values. In contrast, the T(m) values of duplexes with lesions derived from the bay region benzo[a]pyrene diol epoxides (B[a]PDE) in the same sequence are lower by 12 degrees (10R adducts) and by 19 degrees (10S adducts). The greater thermal stabilities of duplexes with fjord PAH-N(6)-dA lesions relative to those with bay region B[a]PDE-N(6)-dA adducts, are correlated with lower susceptibilities of excision by human nucleotide excision repair enzymes [Buterin et al. (2000) Cancer Res. 60, 1849]. The implications of these relationships are discussed in terms of present knowledge of the conformations of fjord and bay region PAH diol epoxide-N(6)-dA lesions in double stranded DNA.