PURPOSE. This study investigated the effects of microRNA-483-3p (miR-483-3p) on extracellular matrix (ECM) production, and clarified the regulatory mechanism of microRNA-483-3p in human trabecular meshwork cells (HTMCs) under oxidative stress. METHODS.The expression levels of ECM (fibronectin, laminin, collagen I) in HTMCs under oxidative stress were measured by Western blot. Changes of miR-483-3p expression in HTMCs were evaluated by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). After using lentivirus stably expressing pri-miR-483, the effects of miR-483-3p on the ECM were assessed by qPCR and Western blot. Smad4, the potential target of miR-483-3p according to mRNA target-predicting algorithms, was confirmed by luciferase assay and Western blot. Furthermore, the effects of Smad4 knockdown on ECM expression were investigated by qPCR and Western blot.RESULTS. The mRNA and protein levels of ECM (fibronectin, laminin, collagen I) were upregulated in HTMCs induced by oxidative stress. The expression level of miR-483-3p decreased in HTMCs under oxidative stress, and the ectopic expression of miR-483-3p decreased the levels of ECM. In addition, miR-483-3p targeted Smad4 through two binding sites, resulting in a decrease of Smad4 expression. Furthermore, knockdown of Smad4 reduced the levels of ECM in HTMCs.CONCLUSIONS. MicroRNA-483-3p has an inhibitory effect on ECM production in HTMCs through downregulating Smad4, which indicates that miR-483-3p may serve as a potential therapeutic target in glaucoma.

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness. The most prevalent form of glaucoma is primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Oxidative stress is one of the major pathogenic factors of the POAG, and can elicit molecular and functional changes in trabecular meshwork cells, causing increased aqueous humor outflow resistance and elevated intraocular pressure. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying oxidative stress-induced cell phenotypic changes remain elusive. Herein, we exposed primary human trabecular meshwork cells to the oxidative stress induced by 300 μM H2O2 for 2 h, and found significantly up-regulated expression of extracellular matrix proteins and a transcription factor, hairy and enhancer of split-1 (HES1). The cell functions, including migration and proliferation, were impaired by the oxidative stress. Furthermore, HES1 shRNA abrogated the extracellular matrix protein up-regulation and rescued the functional defects caused by the oxidative stress; conversely, HES1 overexpression resulted in the molecular and functional changes similar to those induced by H2O2. These results suggest that HES1 promotes extracellular matrix protein expression and inhibits proliferative and migratory functions in the trabecular meshwork cells under oxidative stress, thereby providing a novel pathogenic mechanism underlying and a potential therapeutic target to the POAG.