Effect of miR-1297 on Kidney Injury in Rats with Diabetic Nephropathy through the PTEN/PI3K/AKT Pathway.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the influence of miR-1297 on kidney injury in rats with diabetic nephropathy (DN) and its causal role. METHODS: A DN rat model was established through right kidney resection and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Sham rats did not undergo right kidney resection or STZ injection. The DN rats were divided into the DN model and antagomiR-1297 treatment groups. Kidney morphology was observed using hematoxylin and eosin staining. Renal function indices, including blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine (SCr), and urinary protein, were measured using kits. Levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1ß, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were determined through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Fibrin (FN), collagen type I (Col I), and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) were assessed through western blotting and real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Apoptosis was detected using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling staining. miR-1297 targets were predicted using bioinformatic software and verified through luciferase reporter assay. Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN)/phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) pathway expression was analyzed through western blotting. RESULTS: AntagomiR-1297 reduced BUN (p = 0.005), SCr (p = 0.012), and urine protein (p < 0.001) levels and improved kidney tissue morphology. It prevented renal interstitial fibrosis by decreasing FN, Col I, and α-SMA protein levels (all p < 0.001). AntagomiR-1297 increased SOD (p = 0.001) and GSH-Px (p = 0.002) levels. Additionally, it reduced levels of cell inflammatory factors, including TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1ß (all p < 0.001), and alleviated apoptosis (p < 0.001) in rat kidney tissue with DN. miR-1297 was pinpointed as a target for PTEN. AntagomiR-1297 increased PTEN expression and suppressed PI3K and AKT phosphorylation (all p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: AntagomiR-1297 can mitigate renal fibrosis, renal inflammation, apoptosis, and oxidative stress levels through the PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway.

Effect of miR-1297 on Kidney Injury in Rats with Diabetic Nephropathy through the PTEN/PI3K/AKT Pathway

Abstract Purpose: This study aimed to determine the influence of miR-1297 on kidney injury in rats with diabetic nephropathy (DN) and its causal role. Methods: A DN rat model was established through right kidney resection and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Sham rats did not undergo right kidney resection or STZ injection. The DN rats were divided into the DN model and antagomiR-1297 treatment groups. Kidney morphology was observed using hematoxylin and eosin staining. Renal function indices, including blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine (SCr), and urinary protein, were measured using kits. Levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1β, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were determined through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Fibrin (FN), collagen type I (Col I), and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) were assessed through western blotting and real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Apoptosis was detected using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling staining. miR-1297 targets were predicted using bioinformatic software and verified through luciferase reporter assay. Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN)/phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) pathway expression was analyzed through western blotting. Results: AntagomiR-1297 reduced BUN (p = 0.005), SCr (p = 0.012), and urine protein (p < 0.001) levels and improved kidney tissue morphology. It prevented renal interstitial fibrosis by decreasing FN, Col I, and α-SMA protein levels (all p < 0.001). AntagomiR-1297 increased SOD (p = 0.001) and GSH-Px (p = 0.002) levels. Additionally, it reduced levels of cell inflammatory factors, including TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β (all p < 0.001), and alleviated apoptosis (p < 0.001) in rat kidney tissue with DN. miR-1297 was pinpointed as a target for PTEN... (AU)

Serum ferritin and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio predict all-cause mortality in patients receiving maintenance hemodialysis: a prospective study.

Introduction: Maintenance hemodialysis is an effective treatment for end-stage renal disease patients. A critical factor contributing to the deterioration and death of maintenance hemodialysis patients is inflammation. Therefore, we focused on two inflammatory markers, serum ferritin and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, to speculate whether they could predict the prognosis of maintenance hemodialysis patients. Patients and methods: We followed 168 patients with maintenance hemodialysis from July 2019 to July 2022 with the endpoint of all-cause death or follow-up completion. Receiver operating characteristic curves were plotted to assess the values of serum ferritin, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and serum ferritin combined with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio to predict the outcomes of maintenance hemodialysis patients. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were constructed to compare survival rates over time. Results: Receiver operating characteristic curves demonstrated that the best cut-off value of serum ferritin for predicting the prognosis of maintenance hemodialysis patients was 346.05 µg/L, and that of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was 3.225. Furthermore, a combination of both had a more excellent predicting value than either index (p < 0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival curve analyses revealed that low serum ferritin levels and low neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio had a higher probability of survival than high ferritin levels and high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, separately. Conclusion: Elevated serum ferritin and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio are closely related to all-cause mortality among maintenance hemodialysis patients, for which they may be predictors of all-cause mortality. Additionally, the combination of the two has a much higher predictor value for the prognosis of maintenance hemodialysis patients.

Inhibition of Pyroptosis of Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells by Puerarin via Regulation of lncRNA NEAT1 Ameliorating Chronic Renal Failure.

INTRODUCTION: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is one of the major chronic human diseases worldwide. Puerarin, extensively used in traditional Chinese medicine, has shown favorable clinical effects in treating CKD. Here, we aimed to elucidate the mechanism by which puerarin alleviates CKD. METHODS: We constructed an animal model of CKD and intragastrically administered 400 mg/kg puerarin to the rat models. The extent of kidney injury was evaluated by performing hematoxylin and eosin staining. Then, we quantified the renal function indicators, inflammatory cytokines, apoptosis-related factors, and pyroptosis-related factors. HK-2 cells were treated with lipopolysaccharide (400 ng/mL) in H2O2 (200 µM) to induce oxidative stress. Then, the cells were treated with puerarin and transfected with overexpressed lncRNA NEAT1 vectors. Finally, the regulatory functions of lncRNA NEAT1 in cell apoptosis and pyroptosis were investigated. RESULTS: Puerarin treatment alleviated kidney damage and suppressed inflammation and apoptosis in the CKD rat model. Puerarin ameliorated pyroptosis in the CKD model by inhibiting caspase-1 and GSDMD-N expression. LncRNA NEAT1 was down-regulated in the CKD model after puerarin treatment. Puerarin enhanced cell viability when lncRNA NEAT1 was overexpressed, and the inhibition of apoptosis was reversed in the LPS/H2O2-stimulated HK-2 cells. Furthermore, lncRNA NEAT1 overexpression blocked the anti-pyroptosis effect of Puerarin in the CKD model. CONCLUSION: Puerarin inhibits pyroptosis and inflammation by regulating lncRNA NEAT1, thereby ameliorating CKD.  DOI: 10.52547/ijkd.7565.

The intellectual base and global trends in inflammation of diabetic kidney disease: a bibliometric analysis.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a severe complication of diabetes mellitus (DM). The literature on DKD inflammation research has experienced substantial growth. However, there is a lack of bibliometric analyses. This study aimed to examine the existing research on inflammation in DKD by analyzing articles published in the Web of Science Core Collection (WOSCC) over the past 30 years. We conducted a visualization analysis using several software, including CiteSpace and VOSviewer. We found that the literature on inflammation research in DKD has experienced substantial growth, indicating a rising interest in this developing area of study. In this field, Navarro-Gonzalez, JF is the most frequently cited author, Kidney International is the most frequently cited journal, China had the highest number of publications in the field of DKD inflammation, and Monash University emerged as the institution with the most published research. The research area on inflammation in DKD primarily centers around the investigation of 'Glycation end-products', 'chronic kidney disease', and 'diabetic nephropathy'. The emerging research trends in this field will focus on the 'Gut microbiota', 'NLRP3 inflammasome', 'autophagy', 'pyroptosis', 'sglt2 inhibitor', and 'therapeutic target'. Future research on DKD may focus on further exploring the inflammatory response, identifying specific therapeutic targets, studying biomarkers, investigating stem cell therapy and tissue engineering, and exploring gene therapy and gene editing. In summary, this study examines the main areas of study, frontiers, and trends in DKD inflammation, which have significant implications for future research.

Puerarin alleviates chronic renal failure-induced pyroptosis in renal tubular epithelial cells by targeting miR-342-3p/TGF-ß/SMAD axis.

BACKGROUND: Chronic renal failure (CRF) is the result of kidney damage. Puerarin is a flavonoid with specific nephroprotective effect, but its effect on CRF needs further research. This study explored the effect of puerarin on CRF and the potential molecular mechanism. METHODS: Adenine was used to establish an in vivo CRF model in rats, and rats were intragastrically administered with puerarin at a dose of 400 mg/kg body weight once a day from day 1 to day 28. Hematoxylin and eosin (HE) and Masson staining were used to observe the morphology and fibrosis of kidney tissue. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (400 ng/mL)/H2O2 (200 µM) was applied to human kidney 2 (HK-2) cells to construct an in vitro CRF model. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was performed to validate interleukin (IL)-1ß and IL-18 levels. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was performed to detect microRNA (miR)-342-3p levels. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß)1, SMAD2, SMAD3, and pyroptosis marker proteins were detected by Western blot. The interaction between miR-342-3p and TGF-ß/SMAD was determined by a dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was utilized to determine cell viability. RESULTS: In the CRF model, puerarin alleviated renal injury and fibrosis and reduced creatinine (Cr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels. At the same time, miR-342-3p was downregulated, while the TGF-ß/SMAD axis was activated and levels of IL-1ß and IL-18 were increased. After treatment of CRF rats with puerarin, the expression level of miR-342-3p was increased, the TGF-ß/SMAD axis was inhibited, and the secretion of IL-1ß and IL-18 was decreased. MiR-342-3p directly bound to and negatively regulated the expression of TGF-ß1, SMAD2, and SMAD3. In the in vitro CRF model, miR-342-3p inhibited HK-2 cell pyroptosis by inhibiting the TGF-ß/SMAD axis. CONCLUSION: Puerarin reduced renal injury and pyroptosis in CRF rats by targeting the miR-342-3p/TGF-ß/SMAD axis.

Notoginsenoside R1 can inhibit the interaction between FGF1 and VEGFA to retard podocyte apoptosis.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a chronic condition resulting from microangiopathy in a high-glucose environment. The evaluation of vascular injury in DN has primarily focused on active molecules of VEGF, namely VEGFA and VEGF2(F2R). Notoginsenoside R1 (NGR1), a traditional anti-inflammatory medication, exhibits vascular activity. Therefore, identifying classical drugs with vascular inflammatory protection for the treatment of DN is a valuable pursuit. METHODS: The "Limma" method was employed to analyze the glomerular transcriptome data, while the Spearman algorithm for Swiss target prediction was utilized to analyze the drug targets of NGR1. The molecular docking technique was employed to investigate the relationship between vascular active drug targets, and the COIP experiment was conducted to verify the interaction between fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) and VEGFA in relation to NGR1 and drug targets. RESULTS: According to the Swiss target prediction, the LEU32(b) site of the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A (VEGFA) protein, as well as the Lys112(a), SER116(a), and HIS102(b) sites of the Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 (FGF1) protein, are potential binding sites for NGR1 through hydrogen bonding. Additionally, the Co-immunoprecipitation (COIP) results suggest that VEGFA and FGF1 proteins can interact with each other, and NGR1 can impede this interaction. Furthermore, NGR1 can suppress the expression of VEGFA and FGF1 in a high-glucose environment, thereby decelerating podocyte apoptosis. CONCLUSION: The inhibition of the interaction between FGF1 and VEGFA by NGR1 has been observed to decelerate podocyte apoptosis.

Identification of Markers for Diagnosis and Treatment of Diabetic Kidney Disease Based on the Ferroptosis and Immune.

Background: In advanced diabetic kidney disease (DKD), iron metabolism and immune dysregulation are abnormal, but the correlation is not clear. Therefore, we aim to explore the potential mechanism of ferroptosis-related genes in DKD and their relationship with immune inflammatory response and to identify new diagnostic biomarkers to help treat and diagnose DKD. Methods: Download data from gene expression omnibus (GEO) database and FerrDb database, and construct random forest tree (RF) and support vector machine (SVM) model to screen hub ferroptosis genes (DE-FRGs). We used consistent unsupervised consensus clustering to cluster DKD samples, and enrichment analysis was performed by Gene Set Variation Analysis (GSVA), Gene Ontology (GO), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and then assessed immune cell infiltration abundance using the single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) and CIBERSORT algorithms. Ferroptosis scoring system was established based on the Boruta algorithm, and then, core compounds were screened, and binding sites were predicted by Coremine Medical database. Results: We finally established a 7-gene signature (DUSP1, PRDX6, PEBP1, ZFP36, GABARAPL1, TSC22D3, and RGS4) that exhibited good stability across different datasets. Consistent clustering analysis divided the DKD samples into two ferroptosis modification patterns. Meanwhile, autophagy and peroxisome pathways and immune-related pathways can participate in the regulation of ferroptosis modification patterns. The abundance of immune cell infiltration differs significantly across patterns. Further, molecular docking results showed that the core compound could bind to the protein encoded by the core gene. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that ferroptosis modification plays a crucial role in the diversity and complexity of the DKD immune microenvironment, and the ferroptosis score system can be used to effectively verify the relationship between ferroptosis and immune cell infiltration in DKD patients. Kaempferol and quercetin may be potential drugs to improve the immune and inflammatory mechanisms of DKD by affecting ferroptosis.

Acute kidney injury and its association with mortality in Asian COVID-19 patients: A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Previous evidence suggests that acute kidney injury (AKI) is common in patients with COVID-19 and associated with adverse outcomes. Moreover, the incidence and mortality of AKI in Asia are ambiguous. OBJECTIVE: Evaluating the risk factors and risk of death from AKI in -COVID-19 patients in Asia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a meta-analysis of clinical observational studies of -COVID-19 patients in Asia. Outcome measures included: AKI in COVID-19 patients, overall mortality in COVID-19 patients, and mortality assessment in patients with AKI. The random-effects model was adopted, with heterogeneity and sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: 27 clinical studies (18,216 Asian patients with COVID-19) have been included in the study. The pooled incidence of AKI was 0.19 (95% CI 16 - 23%; I2 = 98.9%, p < 0.001); the pooled incidence of total mortality was 0.19 (95% CI 17 - 22%; I2 = 98.9%, p < 0.001). No publication bias was found (Egger's test, p = 0.396, 0.213). The pooled mortality in AKI patients with COVID-19 was 50% (95% CI 33 - 67%; I2 by random-effects model = 98.4%, p < 0.001). AKI was found to be a risk factor for death in stepwise regression analysis; age, diabetes, and hypertension were influencing factors for AKI risk in -COVID-19 patients. CONCLUSION: AKI is a common complication in Asian COVID-19 patients, and it is associated with an increase in mortality of Asian COVID-19 patients. Any treatment that protects the kidney may be a practical intervention to reduce the mortality of COVID-19 patients in Asia.

Macrophage M1 regulatory diabetic nephropathy is mediated by m6A methylation modification of lncRNA expression.

Immune and inflammatory responses have been identified to play an important role in diabetic nephropathy (DN) (H. Zhou et al. (2021)). It was found that the part of long non-coding RNA (LncRNA) in nephrosis is related to the negative regulation of MicroRNA (miRNA) (C. Gao et al., 2020), which mechanism is unclear; N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is one of the most common mRNA modifications in eukaryotes (Gu et al. (2020)). m6A has been proved in many works of literature can act on the triple helix structure of RNA-DNA and regulate the relationship between lncRNA and specific DNA sites (Fico et al. (2020); Lobos and Regulska-Ilow (2021); Xu et al. (2021)). Other studies have shown that m6A methylation modification plays a vital role in developing metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes by regulating glucose and lipid metabolism and immune inflammation. In this study, we performed a subgroup analysis of m6A-modified LncRNA expression in the DN transcriptome dataset (LncRNA high-low expression group); the results showed that the presence of Macrophage M1-related lncRNA (LINC00342, LINC00667, and LNC00963) in the process of m6A methylation recognition and metastasis was indirectly related to the downstream demethylase FTO, at the same time, we analyzed the interaction between m6A and RBM15, which is involved in the immune regulation of macrophage M1, and found that there might be a potential interaction between RBM15 and WTAP, which may play a role in regulating the methylation of lncRNA in macrophage M1, the DN was mediated by macrophage M1 immunoreaction of macrophages.

Identifying Potential Diagnostic Genes for Diabetic Nephropathy Based on Hypoxia and Immune Status.

BACKGROUND: The prognosis of diabetic nephropathy is poor, and early diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy is challenging. Fortunately, searching for DN-specific markers based on machine algorithms can facilitate diagnosis. METHODS: xCell model and CIBERSORT algorithm were used to analyze the relationship between immune cells and DN, and WGCNA analysis was used to evaluate the regulatory relationship between hypoxia gene and DN-related immune cells. Lasso regression and ROC regression were used to detect the ability of core genes to diagnose DN, the PPI network of core genes with high diagnostic ability was constructed, and the interaction between core genes was discussed. RESULTS: There were 519 differentially expressed genes in renal tubules and 493 differentially expressed genes in glomeruli. Immune and hypoxia responses are involved in the regulation of renal glomerulus and renal tubules. We found that there are 16 hypoxia-related genes involved in the regulation of hypoxia response. Seventeen hypoxia-related genes in renal tubules are involved in regulating hypoxia response on the proteasome signal pathway. Lasso and ROC regression were used to screen anoxic core genes. Further, we found that TGFBR3, APOLD1, CPEB1, and KDR are important in diagnosing DN glomerulopathy, respectively, PSMB8, PSMB9, RHOA, VCAM1, and CDKN1B, which have high specificity for renal tubulopathy in DN. CONCLUSION: Hypoxia and immune reactions are involved in the progression of DN. T cells are the central immune response cells. TGFBR3, APOLD1, CPEB1, and KDR have higher diagnostic accuracy in the diagnosis of DN. PSMB8, PSMB9, RHOA, VCAM1, and CDKN1B have higher diagnostic accuracy in DN diagnosis.

LINC00162 participates in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy via modulating the miR-383/HDAC9 signalling pathway.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a common chronic complication of diabetes. In this study, we aimed to explore the potential role of lncRNA LINC-00162 in the pathogenic process of DN. LncRNA microarray analysis, real-time PCR, IHC computational analysis and luciferase assay were performed to explore the regulatory relationship among LINC00162, miR-383 and HDAC9. There was an obvious difference between T2D + DN and T2D - DN patients in their levels of eGRF and albuminuria. A significant difference was observed between T2D + DN and T2D - DN groups in terms of their LINC00162 expression. In particular, LINC00162 and HDAC9 were highly expressed, while miR-383 was lowly expressed in tissues derived from the T2D + DN group compared with those in tissues derived from the T2D - DN group. MiR-383 was able to bind to LINC00162, while HDAC9 was a direct downstream target of miR-383 with a complementary miR-383 binding site located in the 3' UTR of HDAC9. LINC00162 reduced miR-383 expression and further up-regulated HDAC9 expression, while miR-383 mimics reduced HDAC9 expression under a dose-dependent manner. In summary, we suggested for the first time that down-regulation of LINC00162 was associated with the development of DN in T2D via the up-regulation of miR-383 expression and reduction of HDAC9 expression.

Efficacy of sorafenib combined with radiofrequency ablation in renal cancer and its effects on immunity and inflammation in patients.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare the efficacy of laparoscopic and conventional left hemicolectomy for treating colon cancer and their effects on stress response and quality of life of patients. METHODS: 92 patients with colon cancer were selected. Forty three patients in the study group were treated with laparoscopic left hemicolectomy, and 49 patients in the control group were treated with conventional left hemicolectomy. The surgery, postoperative recovery, intraoperative and postoperative complications were compared between the two groups. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the levels of IL1ß and IL-6. The quality of life of patients after surgery was analyzed by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lung (FACT-L). RESULTS: The operation time and intraoperative blood loss of the study group were statistically lower than those of the control group (p<0.05). The postoperative exhaust time and hospitalization time of the study group were statistically shorter than those of the control group (p<0.05). Serum IL-1ß and IL-6 levels in the study group were significantly lower than those in the control group (p<0.05). In the two groups, the overall scores of quality of life after surgery were significantly lower than those before surgery (p<0.05). After surgery, the overall score of quality of life in the study group was significantly higher than that in the control group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The laparoscopic left hemicolectomy with surgical approaches on the surgical plane has high safety and marked efficacy.

LINK-A lncRNA activates HIF1α signaling and inhibits podocyte cell apoptosis in diabetic nephropathy.

Previous studies have revealed that long intergenic non-coding RNA for kinase activation (LINK-A), a long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) promotes disease progression in triple-negative breast cancer by activating hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF1α). However, the activation of HIF1α has also been demonstrated to improve diabetic nephropathy. It is therefore reasonable to expect that LINK-A may also participate in diabetic nephropathy. In the current study, the expression of LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α was determined in renal biopsies of patients with diabetic nephropathy. LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α expression levels were detected by reverse transcription quantitative (RT-q) PCR and ELISA in diabetic patients without complications and used as controls. Correlations between LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α expression were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient. Effects of lncRNA and HIF1α overexpression on LINK-A lncRNA expression, HIF1α expression and cell apoptosis were assessed using RT-qPCR, western blotting and a cell apoptosis assay. The results revealed that LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α were downregulated in patients with diabetic nephropathy, as well as in diabetic patients without complications. The lowest expression of LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α were observed in healthy controls. A positive correlation was identified between LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α in both patients groups, but not in the control group. LINK-A lncRNA and HIF1α overexpression inhibited the apoptosis of mouse podocyte cells under a high glucose treatment. LINK-A lncRNA overexpression also promoted HIF1α expression in mouse podocyte cells, while HIF1α overexpression did not significantly affect LINK-A lncRNA expression. In conclusion, LINK-A lncRNA may activate HIF1α signaling resulting in the improvement of diabetic nephropathy treatment.

MicroRNA-146a improves sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy by regulating the TLR-4/NF-κB signaling pathway.

The aim of the current study was to investigate the regulatory effect of miR-146a on the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4)/NF-κB pathway and therefore inflammation in septic cardiomyopathy. A total of 60 healthy male Sprague Dawley rats were equally divided into a control, LPS, miR-146a agonist and miR-146a inhibitor group. Blood samples were collected from rats 24 h after intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharide injection and myocardial tissues were subsequently collected. After hematoxylin and eosin staining of rat myocardial tissues, the degree of inflammatory cell infiltration and myocardial damage was observed. The content of certain myocardial injury markers were also observed, including cardiac troponin I (cTnI), B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), creatine kinase myocardial bound (CK-MB) and myoglobin (Mb). Western blot analysis was performed to detect the expression of NF-κB/TLR-4, tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in myocardial tissues. Reverse transcription-quantitative (RT-q) PCR was used to detect the expression of miR-146a, TNF-α, interleukin (IL)-1α and IL-1ß mRNA in myocardial tissues. In the LPS group, myocardial interstitial tissue edema occurred, with enlarged and loosely arranged cardiomyocytes. Compared with the sepsis model group, myocardial interstitial tissue edema was relieved in the miR-146a agonist group, but was aggravated in the miR-146a inhibition group. The serum levels of cTnI, BNP, CK-MB, Mb, NF-κB, TLR-4, TNF-α and ICAM-1 in the sepsis model group were higher than those in the control group. In the miR-146a agonist group, levels of myocardial injury markers were lower than those in the sepsis model group, but were higher in the miR-146a inhibition group. The results of RT-qPCR demonstrated that the expression of miR-146a, TNF-α, IL-1α and IL-1ß in the sepsis model group were upregulated compared with the control group. In addition, miR-146a expression in the miR-146a agonist group and the miR-146a inhibition group was increased, but TNF-α, IL-1α and IL-1ß mRNA was downregulated. miR-146a may regulate the TLR-4/NF-κB signaling pathway via negative feedback mechanisms, leading to the improvement of the inflammatory response and cardiac dysfunction in sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy.

A negative feedback loop of H19/miR-675/EGR1 is involved in diabetic nephropathy by downregulating the expression of the vitamin D receptor.

AIM: We aimed to explore the regulatory relationship among the long noncoding RNA H19, micorRNA-675 (miR-675), the vitamin D (VD) receptor (VDR), and the early growth response protein 1 (EGR1) in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy (DN) among patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). METHODS: Expression levels of H19, miR-675, VDR, and EGR in patients or CIHP-1/HEK 293 cells were measured via quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis. Computational analysis and luciferase assays were performed to determine EGR1 as a target gene of miR-675. RESULTS: The relative expression of miR-675 was higher in the presence of H19, whereas the expression of both VDR and EGR1 messenger RNA was decreased in the presence of H19 or miR-675. However, relative expression of H19 and miR-675 was increased, whereas VDR expression was suppressed upon the treatment of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 or EGR1. VDR was identified as a target gene of miR-675. The H19 promoter and EGR1 increased the luciferase activity of cells transfected with wild-type VDR. Compared with DM patients free of DN, the levels of H19 and miR-675 were increased in the DN(+) group, whereas the levels of VDR and EGR1 were decreased. CONCLUSION: In summary, the above results indicate the presence of a negative feedback loop in the pathological mechanism of DN, where H19 downregulates the expression of VDR by upregulating the expression of miR-675, whereas reduced VDR expression subsequently reduced the expression of EGR1. Moreover, reduced EGR1 expression inhibits H19 expression, thus forming a negative feedback loop required to maintain the homeostasis of VDR and to reduce the incidence of DN.

MicroRNA-22 is downregulated in clear cell renal cell carcinoma, and inhibits cell growth, migration and invasion by targeting PTEN.

MicroRNA (miR)-22 has previously been reported to be frequently downregulated in certain types of cancer. The present study examined the expression and effects of miR-22 in renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The results indicated that miR­22 was downregulated in tumor tissue from patients with RCC. In addition, lower miR­22 expression levels were associated with histological grade, tumor stage and lymph node metas-tasis. Following transfection of RCC cells with miR­22, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide, cell migration, cell invasion and luciferase assays, and western blotting were conducted. The results demonstrated that miR­22 was able to inhibit cell proliferation, migration and invasion in 786­O and A498 cells. Furthermore, the results indicated that miR­22 may directly target phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in RCC. In conclusion, the present study suggested that the miR-22/PTEN axis may be considered a novel therapeutic target in RCC. These findings may be beneficial for the development of an effective therapy against RCC.

Histone deacetylase 10 suppresses proliferation and invasion by inhibiting the phosphorylation of ß-catenin and serves as an independent prognostic factor for human clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Histone deacetylase (HDAC) is a tumor suppressor gene in various carcinomas; however, the effect of HDAC10 on human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remains unknown. In the current study we analyzed the expression and function of HDAC10 in human clear cell RCC. METHODS: RCC tissues from 145 patients who underwent radical nephrectomies were evaluated. HDAC10 protein and mRNA expression was examined by immunohistochemistry and quantitative RT-PCR, respectively. HDAC10 expression was increased by stable transfection with a vector containing full-length cDNA of HDAC10, and HDAC10 expression was decreased by siRNA in two RCC cell lines. Proliferation analysis of RCC cells in vitro was investigated using the WST-1 assay, and the invasion assay was performed using a 24-well Transwell chamber. The phosphorylation of ß-catenin induced by HDAC10 was evaluated by Western blot. RESULTS: HDAC10 expression in RCC tissues was significantly down-regulated compared to normal kidney tissues. Moreover, the low level of HDAC10 expression was uniformly associated with advanced clinical stage, larger tumor diameter, higher pathologic grade, and metastatic RCC. In addition, decreased expression of HDAC10 significantly prompted the proliferation and invasion of RCC cells in vitro. Although HDAC10 did not regulate the expression of ß-catenin, HDAC10 suppressed the phosphorylation of ß-catenin in RCC cells. CONCLUSIONS: HDAC10 expression is suppressed in human clear cell RCC and is involved in development and metastasis of RCC. The findings herein suggest that HDAC10 is an independent predictive factor for RCC prognosis, and restoring HDAC10 expression may be a new therapeutic strategy for advanced RCC.

Charlson comorbidity index helps predict the risk of mortality for patients with type 2 diabetic nephropathy.

Our intent is to examine the predictive role of Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) on mortality of patients with type 2 diabetic nephropathy (DN). Based on the CCI score, the severity of comorbidity was categorized into three grades: mild, with CCI scores of 1-2; moderate, with CCI scores of 3-4; and severe, with CCI scores ≥5. Factors influencing mortality and differences between groups stratified by CCI were determined by logistical regression analysis and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The impact of CCI on mortality was assessed by the Kaplan-Meier analysis. A total of 533 patients with type 2 DN were enrolled in this study, all of them had comorbidity (CCI score >1), and 44.7% (238/533) died. The mortality increased with CCI scores: 21.0% (50/238) patients with CCI scores of 1-2, 56.7% (135/238) patients with CCI scores of 3-4, and 22.3% (53/238) patients with CCI scores ≥5. Logistical regression analysis showed that CCI scores, hemoglobin, and serum albumin were the potential predictors of mortality (P<0.05). One-way ANOVA analysis showed that DN patients with higher CCI scores had lower levels of hemoglobulin, higher levels of serum creatinine, and higher mortality rates than those with lower CCI scores. The Kaplan-Meier curves showed that survival time decreased when the CCI scores and mortality rates went up. In conclusion, CCI provides a simple, readily applicable, and valid method for classifying comorbidities and predicting the mortality of type 2 DN. An increased awareness of the potential comorbidities in type 2 DN patients may provide insights into this complicated disease and improve the outcomes by identifying and treating patients earlier and more effectively.