Overexpression of miR-506-3p reversed doxorubicin resistance in drug-resistant osteosarcoma cells.

Background and objective: Osteosarcoma is a common primary malignant tumor of bone, and doxorubicin is one of the most widely used therapeutic drugs. While the problem of doxorubicin resistance limits the long-term treatment benefits in osteosarcoma patients. The role of miRNAs and their target genes in osteosarcoma have become increasingly prominent. Currently, there is no report on miR-506-3p reversing doxorubicin resistance by targeting STAT3 in osteosarcoma. The purpose of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanism that overexpression of miR-506-3p reverses doxorubicin resistance in drug-resistant osteosarcoma cells. Methods: Doxorubicin-resistant osteosarcoma cells (U-2OS/Dox) were constructed by intermittent stepwise increasing stoichiometry. The target genes of miR-506-3p were predicted by bioinformatics approach and the targeting relationship between miR-506-3p and STAT3 was detected using dual luciferase reporter assay. U-2OS/Dox cells were treated with miR-506-3p overexpression and STAT3 silencing respectively. Then Western blot and RT-qPCR were used to detect the protein and mRNA expression levels of JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway, drug-resistant and apoptotic associated molecules. The migration and invasion were assessed by cell scratch assay and transwell assay. The cell proliferative viability and apoptosis were investigated by CCK8 assay and flow cytometry assay. Results: U-2OS/Dox cells were successfully constructed with a 14.4-fold resistance. MiR-506-3p is directly bound to the 3'-UTR of STAT3 mRNA. Compared with U-2OS cells, the mRNA expression of miR-506-3p was reduced in U-2OS/Dox cells. Overexpression of miR-506-3p decreased the mRNA expression levels of JAK2, STAT3, MDR1/ABCB1, MRP1/ABCC1, Survivin and Bcl-2, and decreased the protein expression levels of p-JAK2, STAT3, MDR1/ABCB1, MRP1/ABCC1, Survivin and Bcl-2, and conversely increased Bax expression. It also inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of U-2OS/Dox cells and promoted cells apoptosis. The results of STAT3 silencing experiments in the above indicators were consistent with that of miR-506-3p overexpression. Conclusion: Overexpression of miR-506-3p could inhibit the JAK2/STAT3 pathway and the malignant biological behaviors, then further reverse doxorubicin resistance in drug-resistant osteosarcoma cells. The study reported a new molecular mechanism for reversing the resistance of osteosarcoma to doxorubicin chemotherapy and provided theoretical support for solving the clinical problems of doxorubicin resistance in osteosarcoma.

Integrated omics analysis reveals the epigenetic mechanism of visceral hypersensitivity in IBS-D.

Background and objective: IBS-D is a common functional bowel disease with complex etiology and without biomarker. The pathological and physiological basis of IBS-D focuses on visceral hypersensitivity. However, its epigenetic mechanism remains elusive. Our study aimed to integrate the relationship between differentially expressed miRNAs, mRNAs and proteins in IBS-D patients in order to reveal epigenetic mechanism of visceral hypersensitivity from transcription and protein levels and provide the molecular basis for discovering biomarkers of IBS-D. Methods: The intestinal biopsies from IBS-D patients and healthy volunteers were obtained for high-throughput sequencing of miRNAs and mRNAs. The differential miRNAs were selected and verified by q-PCR experiment followed by target mRNA prediction. Biological functions were respectively analyzed for target mRNAs, differential mRNAs and the previously identified differential proteins in order to explore the characteristic involved visceral hypersensitivity. At last, interaction analysis of miRNAs, mRNAs and proteins was performed for the epigenetic regulation mechanism from transcription and protein levels. Results: Thirty-three miRNAs were found to be differentially expressed in IBS-D and five of them were further confirmed, including upregulated hsa-miR-641, hsa-miR-1843, hsa-let-7d-3p and downregulated hsa-miR-219a-5p, hsa-miR-19b-1-5p. In addition, 3,812 differential mRNAs were identified. Thirty intersecting molecules were found from the analysis on the target mRNAs of miRNAs and mRNAs. Fourteen intersecting molecules were obtained from the analysis on the target mRNAs and proteins, and thirty-six intersecting molecules were identified from analysis on the proteins and different mRNAs. According to the integrated analysis of miRNA-mRNA-protein, we noticed two new molecules COPS2 regulated by hsa-miR-19b-1-5p and MARCKS regulated by hsa-miR-641. Meanwhile some critical signaling pathways in IBS-D were found such as MAPK, GABAergic synapse, Glutamatergic synapse, and Adherens junction. Conclusion: The expressions of hsa-miR-641, hsa-miR-1843, hsa-let-7d-3p, hsa-miR-219a-5p, and hsa-miR-19b-1-5p in the intestinal tissues of IBS-D patients were significantly different. Moreover, they could regulate a variety of molecules and signaling pathways, which were involved in the multifaceted and multilevel mechanism of visceral hypersensitivity of IBS-D.

Efficacy and safety of salvianolate and enoxaparin in the prevention of perioperative deep venous thrombosis in gastrointestinal surgery.

OBJECTIVE: In this study, the efficacy and safety of salvianolate were compared with enoxaparin in the prevention of perioperative deep vein thrombosis in gastrointestinal surgery. METHODS: From October 2017 to September 2019, 563 patients who underwent gastrointestinal surgery were collected. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 119 patients were divided into two groups: enoxaparin group (n = 65) and salvianolate group (n = 54). Comparisons were made regarding the outcomes: prothrombin time (PT), prothrombin activity (PTA), international normalized ratio (INR), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), fibrinogen (FIB), thrombin time (TT), D-dimer level (D-D), platelet count (PLT), hematokrit (HCT), and incidence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). RESULTS: The main outcomes showed no significance between enoxaparin group and salvianolate group (p > .05). The incidence of DVT in salvianolate group was 1.85%, significantly lower than that in enoxaparin group (12.3%) (p < .05). No serious adverse reactions occurred in the two groups during treatment. CONCLUSION: Compared with enoxaparin, salvianolate has an advantage in the prevention of perioperative thrombosis in gastrointestinal surgery with a lower incidence of DVT.

Ligustrazine Attenuates Liver Fibrosis by Targeting miR-145 Mediated Transforming Growth Factor-ß/Smad Signaling in an Animal Model of Biliary Atresia.

To investigate therapeutic target for ligustrazine during liver fibrosis in an ethanol-induced biliary atresia rat model and transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) induced hepatic stellate cell activation cell model, and the underlying mechanism, a total of 30 rats were randomly assigned into five groups (n = 6 per group): control, sham, ethanol-induced biliary atresia model, model plus pirfenidone, and model plus ligustrazine groups. The liver changes were assessed using H&E and Masson staining and transmission electron microscopy. Expression of miR-145 and mRNA and protein levels of TGF-ß/smads pathway-related proteins were detected. HSC-T6 cells were infected with LV-miR or rLV-miR-145 in the presence or absence of SMAD3 inhibitor SIS3 and treated with 2.5 ng/ml TGF-ß1 and then with ligustrazine. Collected cells were subjected to detect the expression of miR-145 and mRNA and protein expression levels of TGF-ß/smads pathway-related proteins. Ligustrazine rescued liver fibrogenesis and pathology for ethanol-caused bile duct injury, revealed by decreased α-smooth muscle actin and collagen I expression and liver tissue and cell morphology integrity. Further experiments showed that ligustrazine inhibited intrinsic and phosphorylated Smad2/3 protein expression and modification. Similar results were obtained in cells. In addition, ligustrazine altered miR-145 expression in both animal and cell models. Lentivirus mediated miR-145 overexpression and knockdown recombinant virus showed that miR-145 enhanced the TGF-ß/Smad pathway, which led to hepatic stellate cell activation, and ligustrazine blocked this activation. This work validated that ligustrazine-regulated miR-145 mediated TGF-ß/Smad signaling to inhibit the progression of liver fibrosis in a biliary atresia rat model and provided a new therapeutic strategy for liver fibrosis. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: With an ethanol-induced biliary atresia rat model, ligustrazine was found to rescue liver fibrogenesis and pathology for ethanol caused bile duct injury, revealed by decreased α-smooth muscle actin and collagen I expression and liver tissue and cell morphology integrity. Furthermore, we found ligustrazine upregulated miR-145 expression and inhibited TGF-ß/SMAD signaling pathway both in vivo and in vitro. In addition, overexpression and knockdown of miR-145 confirmed that miR-145 is involved in the ligustrazine inhibition of liver fibrosis through the TGF-ß/SMAD signaling pathway.

Study on the mechanism of Danshen-Guizhi drug pair in the treatment of ovarian cancer based on network pharmacology and in vitro experiment.

Our study aims to explore the active components and mechanisms of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair in treating ovarian cancer by network pharmacology and in vitro experiment. The "component-target-pathway" diagram of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair was established by network pharmacology, and the effective active components, important targets as well as potential mechanisms of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair were analyzed. The predicted results were verified by molecular docking and in vitro experiments. The main active components of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair in the treatment of ovarian cancer are salviolone, luteolin, ß-sitosterol and tanshinone IIA. The main core target is PTGS2. The pathways involved mainly include the cancer pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and IL-17 signaling pathway. The molecular docking results showed that salviolone and tanshinone IIA had good binding ability to the target. The expression of PTGS2 mRNA and PGE2 in ovarian cells were significantly inhibited by salviolone. The mechanism of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair in the treatment of ovarian cancer may be regulating cell proliferation, apoptosis and tumor immunity. This provides a theoretical basis for the clinical development and application of the Danshen-Guizhi drug pair.

6-Shogaol alleviates CCl4-induced liver fibrosis by attenuating inflammatory response in mice through the NF-κB pathway.

Liver fibrosis is a global health problem caused by a number of diseases related to liver damage. 6-Shogaol is a biologically active substance derived from the rhizome of Zingiber officinale Roscoe with anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. To explore the effects of 6-Shogaol on liver fibrosis, we used a mouse model of the condition in which mice were injected intraperitoneally with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) at a dose of 2 mL/kg three times per week for a period of 4 weeks. 6-Shogaol was administered orally at two different doses (5 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg) 30 min before CCl4 injection. CCl4 induced severe liver injury and fibrosis, as indicated by significant inflammatory cell infiltration, disordered liver structure, increased activities of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase (liver damage markers) in serum, elevated collagen deposition, and overexpressed alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA, marker of hepatic stellate cells activation) in liver tissues, whereas 6-Shogaol administration rescued those alterations dose-dependently. We found that 6-Shogaol suppressed CCl4-induced inflammatory response by inhibiting macrophage recruitment, release of pro-inflammatory factors, and activation of the NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome in liver tissues. Additionally, we demonstrated that 6-Shogaol blocked CCl4-induced activation of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) pathway, which is a vital transcriptional regulator of the inflammatory response. Altogether, this study demonstrates that 6-Shogaol can prevent CCl4-induced liver fibrosis by suppressing inflammatory response through the NF-κB pathway and suggests that 6-Shogaol can be used for liver fibrosis prevention.

Identification and potential functions of tRNA-derived small RNAs (tsRNAs) in irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea.

IBS-D is a functional bowel disease without clear diagnostic markers and exact pathogenesis. Studies have proved that non-coding RNAs participate in IBS-D. However, tRNA-derived small RNAs (tsRNAs), as a new type of non-coding RNAs that are more suitable as markers, remain to be clarified in IBS-D. Hence, we focused on the identification and potential functions of tsRNAs in IBS-D. Intestinal biopsies were obtained from IBS-D patients and healthy volunteers, and twenty-eight differential tsRNAs were screened by high-throughput sequencing. The changes of tiRNA-His-GTG-001, tRF-Ser-GCT-113, and tRF-Gln-TTG-035 by q-PCR in expanded samples were consistent with the sequencing results. Meanwhile, target gene prediction and bioinformatics showed that the three differential tsRNAs may be involved in some key signal pathways, such as GABAergic synapse, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), etc. Their regulation on target genes were demonstrated through cell experiments and luciferase reporter assays. In addition, the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that the three tsRNAs all could be used as candidate markers of IBS-D. The correlation analysis indicated they were related to the degree of abdominal pain, abdominal distension, and stool morphology. So, we believe that the abnormal tiRNA-His-GTG-001, tRF-Ser-GCT-113, and tRF-Gln-TTG-035 are related to the clinical symptoms of IBS-D, and can target regulate the important molecules of the brain-gut axis, even could be expected as potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of IBS-D.

The safety and effectiveness of salvianolate in preventing perioperative venous thromboembolism in China: A PRISMA-compliant meta-analysis based on RCTs.

BACKGROUND: Salvianolate, a common drug for stabilizing heart disease and Angina Pectoris, is considered to be off-label for preventing venous thromboembolism (VTE) or anticoagulation at present. However, many clinical studies have showed that salvianolate can effectively inhibit the deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) incidence, and prevent VTE of perioperative patients in the real world in China. OBJECTIVE: This analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of salvianolate in preventing VTE in perioperative patients. METHODS: Databases of PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, CNKI, Wanfang and VIP were searched until July 2019. Literature retrieval, data extraction and quality assessment were independently completed by two researchers and checked with each other. Review Manager 5.2 software was applied for meta-analysis. RESULTS: A total of 429 studies were retrieved, including 11 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with a total of 1149 subjects. Compared with low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) group alone, salvianolate combined LMWH group had lower DVT incidence in preventing perioperative thrombosis (2.75% and 14.23%, OR: 0.21, 95% CI:[0.08,0.53]; P = .0009). The incidence of adverse reactions of experimental group was similar to that of control group (1.79% and 2.31%, OR: 0.65, 95% CI:[0.18,2.35]. P = .51). Compared with the control group, D-dimer level (D-D), platelet count (PLT), fibrinogen (FIB), whole blood high shear viscosity (WBHSV), and whole blood low shear viscosity (WBLSV) were all significantly decreased (P < .01), and prothrombin time (PT) was significantly increased (P < .05). CONCLUSION: Salvianolate combined LMWH has better effectiveness and the same safety in preventing venous thromboembolism in perioperative patients. However, due to the small number of included literatures, large sample studies are still needed to further verify this conclusion.

TMT proteomics analysis of intestinal tissue from patients of irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea: Implications for multiple nutrient ingestion abnormality.

Diarrheal irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) is a chronic functional bowel disease with no clear diagnostic markers and no satisfactory treatment strategies. In recent years, the importance of intestinal microstructure and function in IBS-D has been emphasized. However, the intestinal tissue proteomics of IBS-D patients has not been analyzed. Here, we systematically analyzed the molecule profiling of the intestinal tissues in IBS-D patients through tandem mass tag (TMT)-based proteomics for the first time, aiming to reveal the pathogenesis and provide evidence for diagnosis and treatment of IBS-D. Five IBS-D patients and five healthy subjects were selected, biopsy tissue samples from the junction of sigmoid and rectum were analyzed by TMT proteomics. Differentially expressed proteins were obtained and bioinformatics analysis was performed. Furthermore, parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) and q-PCR detection were applied to validate the differentially expressed proteins. Eighty differentially expressed proteins were screened, 48 of which were up-regulated and 32 were down-regulated (fold change >1.2, P < 0.05). Bioinformatics analysis showed that these proteins were significantly enriched in the nutrient ingestion pathways which are related to immune molecules. SELENBP1, VSIG2, HMGB1, DHCR7, BCAP31 and other molecules were significantly changed. Our study revealed the underlying mechanisms of IBS-D intestinal dysfunction. SIGNIFICANCE: Irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D) is a worldwide chronic intestinal disease with no definite diagnostic markers. It is still a challenge to accurately locate the pathogenesis of patients for appropriate treatment strategy. Established proteomics studies of IBS-D are only based on urine, blood, or tissue samples from animals. Our study was the first TMT proteomics analysis on intestinal biopsy tissues of patients with IBS-D, which revealed the changes of molecular spectrum of actual intestinal conditions in patients with IBS-D. Some important molecules and signaling pathways have been found abnormal in our study, which were related with nutrient uptake. They not only provided preliminary clues for low fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols (FODMAP) intolerance, an unsolved conundrum of IBS-D, but also revealed obscure problems of protein, lipid, and other nutrients ingestion in IBS-D patients. Some of these differentially expressed molecules have been preliminarily verified, and will may be potential candidate molecules for diagnostic markers of IBS-D.

Inhibition of miRNA-29a regulates intestinal barrier function in diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome by upregulating ZO-1 and CLDN1.

Diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) is a common chronic functional gastrointestinal disorder. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified to be involved in different physiological and pathological processes. In this study, the role of miRNA-29a in the potential mechanism underlying the function of the intestinal mucosal barrier in IBS-D was analyzed. Human intestinal mucosal epithelia from patients with IBS-D (diagnosed as meeting the Rome IV criteria) and healthy volunteers were collected. An IBS-D mouse model was established via induction with trinitro-benzene-sulfonic acid (TNBS), and the mice were injected with miRNA-29a inhibitor. Using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the epithelial ultrastructure of the human intestinal mucosa was examined. Using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis, the expression level of miRNA-29a was assessed. ELISA was used to analyze the activity of D-lactate (D-LA) and diamine oxidase (DAO). Through immunohistochemistry, RT-qPCR and western blotting, the expression of tight junction protein ZO-1 (ZO-1) and claudin-1 (CLDN1) was examined. In the human intestinal mucosal epithelia from patients with IBS-D, miRNA-29a was upregulated, ZO-1 and CLDN1 were downregulated, and the junctional complex (JC) was faint and discontinuous. In the IBS-D mouse model, treatment with miRNA-29a inhibitor downregulated D-LA and DAO activity, and increased the expression of ZO-1 and CLDN1 in the intestinal mucosal epithelium. In conclusion, the present study revealed that miRNA-29a is involved in the pathogenesis of IBS-D, probably by downregulating ZO-1 and CLDN1 expression, suggesting that miRNA-29a is likely to be an important regulator of intestinal barrier function and could be a possible therapeutic target for IBS-D.

Efficacy and safety of azithromycin combined with glucocorticoid on refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in children: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of azithromycin (AZI) combined with glucocorticoid (GC) in the treatment of children with refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae. METHODS: Computer search for PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, China Biomedical Literature Database (CBMdisc), China Knowledge Network (CNKI), Wanfang, VIP (VIP), and a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of AZI combined with GC in the treatment of children with refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia test (RCT), the search time limit is built until March 20, 2019. Two researchers independently performed literature screening, data extraction, and literature risk bias, and meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS: A total of 12 RCTs were included, including 1130 patients. Meta-analysis showed that AZI combined with GC therapy significantly improved the total effective rate of the disease compared with the conventional treatment group (odds ratio [OR] = 6.37; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.03, 10.07; P < .00001; I = 0%), effectively shortened the antipyretic time (SMD = -2.29; 95% CI -2.70, -1.88; P < .0001); promoted lung inflammation absorption (SMD = -1.89; 95% CI -2.38, -1.40; P < .0001), reduced cough time (SMD = -2.39; 95% CI -2.80, -1.99; P < .0001); shortened hospital stay (SMD = -2.19; 95% CI -3.21, -1.17; P < .0001); improved imaging findings (OR = 5.38; 95% CI 1.09, 26.51, P = .04); reduced inflammation index (SMD = -3.15; 95% CI -4.93, -1.36; P = .004); improved immune function (SMD = 1.29; 95% CI -0.02, 2.60; P < .0001); had no significant adverse reactions (OR = 1.18; 95% CI 0.71, 1.98; P = .53). CONCLUSIONS: According to the current limited research evidence, the addition of GCs to the conventional treatment of refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae in children can improve the clinical efficacy to a certain extent, and the safety is better. However, due to the quality and quantity of the included literature, the conclusions of this study need to be confirmed by more high-quality studies.

MiRNA-29a modulates visceral hyperalgesia in irritable bowel syndrome by targeting HTR7.

Some patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) have visceral hypersensitivity, which contributes to their abdominal pain. miRNA-29 was detected to be significantly upregulated in colonic tissues of patients with IBS. However, it is unknown whether miRNA-29a is involved in the visceral hypersensitivity pathogenesis of IBS. This study aimed to investigate whether miRNA-29a participates in visceral hypersensitivity in IBS. We investigated miRNA-29a in intestinal biopsies collected during endoscopy of patients with IBS (n = 10) and healthy volunteers (control) (n = 10). In addition, a water avoidance stress (WAS)-induced visceral hypersensitivity IBS mouse model was established. The abdominal withdrawal reflex (AWR) scores of mice in response to colorectal distention were used to assess visceral sensitivity. Reverse transcription quantitative-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to measure miRNA-29a levels. Immunofluorescence, RT-qPCR and western blot were used to measure 5-HT7 receptor (HTR7) levels. Bioinformatic analysis and luciferase reporter assays were used to detect the direct relationship between miRNA-29a and HTR7. Finally, alterations in the levels of HTR7 and miRNA-29a were measured in the human intestinal epithelial cell line NCM460 after transfection with miRNA-29a inhibitor or mimic. Intestinal tissues from patients with IBS and WAS-induced IBS mice had increased levels of miRNA-29a, but reduced levels of HTR7. MiRNA-29a knockout resulted in overexpression of HTR7 and attenuated visceral hyperalgesia in WAS-induced IBS mice. HTR7 was a direct target of miRNA-29a. Based on analyses of intestinal tissue samples from patients with IBS and WAS-induced miRNA-29a-/- mice, miRNA-29a plays a role in the visceral hyperalgesia pathogenesis of IBS, probably through regulating HTR7 expression.

Increased microRNA-93-5p inhibits osteogenic differentiation by targeting bone morphogenetic protein-2.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Trauma-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head (TIONFH) is a major complication of femoral neck fractures. Degeneration and necrosis of subchondral bone can cause collapse, which results in hip joint dysfunction in patients. The destruction of bone metabolism homeostasis is an important factor for osteonecrosis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have an important role in regulating osteogenic differentiation, but the mechanisms underlying abnormal bone metabolism of TIONFH are poorly understood. In this study, we screened specific miRNAs in TIONFH by microarray and further explored the mechanism of osteogenic differentiation. DESIGN: Blood samples from patients with TIONFH and patients without necrosis after trauma were compared by microarray, and bone collapse of necrotic bone tissue was evaluated by micro-CT and immunohistochemistry. To confirm the relationship between miRNA and osteogenic differentiation, we conducted cell culture experiments. We found that many miRNAs were significantly different, including miR-93-5p; the increase in this miRNA was verified by Q-PCR. Comparison of the tissue samples showed that miR-93-5p expression increased, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteopontin (OPN) levels decreased, suggesting miR-93-5p may be involved in osteogenic differentiation. Further bioinformatics analysis indicated that miR-93-5p can target bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2). A luciferase gene reporter assay was performed to confirm these findings. By simulating and/or inhibiting miR-93-5p expression in human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells, we confirmed that osteogenic differentiation-related indictors, including BMP-2, Osterix, Runt-related transcription factor, ALP and OPN, were decreased by miR-93-5p. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that increased miR-93-5p in TIONFH patients inhibited osteogenic differentiation, which may be associated with BMP-2 reduction. Therefore, miR-93-5p may be a potential target for prevention of TIONFH.

Role of stem cell growth factor/c-Kit in the pathogenesis of irritable bowel syndrome.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional bowel disease with a complicated etiopathogenesis, often characterized by gastrointestinal motility disorder and high visceral sensitivity. IBS is a comprehensive multi-systemic disorder, with the interaction of multiple factors, such as mental stress, intestinal function and flora, heredity, resulting in the disease. The existence of a common mechanism underlying the aforementioned factors is currently unknown. The lack of therapies that comprehensively address the disease symptoms, including abdominal pain and diarrhea, is a limitation of current IBS management. The current review has explored the role of the SCF/c-Kit receptor/ligand system in IBS. The SCF/c-Kit system constitutes a classical ligand/receptor tyrosine kinase signaling system that mediates inflammation and smooth muscle contraction. Additionally, it provides trophic support to neural crest-derived cell types, including the enteric nervous system and mast cells. The regulation of SCF/c-Kit on the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) suggest that it may play a key role in the aberrant intestinal dynamics and high visceral sensitivity observed in IBS. The role of the SCF/c-Kit system in intestinal motility, inflammation and nerve growth has been reported. From the available biomedical evidence on the pathogenesis of IBS, it has been concluded that the SCF-c-Kit system is a potential therapeutic target for rational drug design in the treatment of IBS.