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Circular RNAs (circRNAs) participate in the pathogenesis of various diseases by sponging microRNAs (miRs). However, the roles of circRNAs remain unreported in glomerular diseases. We previously reported that miR-150 positively correlated with renal chronicity index in patients with lupus nephritis (LN). We aimed to investigate renal circRNA profiling and the interaction between circRNAs and miR-150 in LN patients. Six renal biopsies from untreated female patients with LN class IV and five normal kidney tissues from urology patients were used for circRNA sequencing. 171 circRNAs with 2-fold differential expression were identified in LN compared with normal control. Ten selected circRNAs were validated by real-time qPCR, and seven circRNAs showed the same significant increases as the sequencing results. circHLA-C positively correlated with proteinuria (R = 0.92, p < 0.01), serum creatinine (R = 0.76, p = 0.08), renal activity index (R = 0.88, p < 0.05), and crescentic glomeruli (R = 0.93, p < 0.01). Renal circHLA-C increased 2.72-fold, and miR-150 decreased 66% in LN compared with normal control (p < 0.05). Bio-informatic analysis predicted miR-150 was regulated by circHLA-C and displayed one perfect match seed between circHLA-C and miR-150. The renal miR-150 showed a tendency of negative correlation with circHLA-C in LN patients. In conclusion, circHLA-C may play an important role in the pathogenesis of lupus nephritis by sponging miR-150.

Accumulating evidence indicates that ectopic expression of non‐coding RNAs are responsible for breast cancer progression. Increased non‐coding RNA PVT1, the host gene of microRNA‐1207‐5p (miR‐1207‐5p), has been associated with breast cancer proliferation. However, how PVT1 functions in breast cancer is still not clear. In this study, we show a PVT1‐derived microRNA, miR‐1207‐5p, that promotes the proliferation of breast cancer cells by directly regulating STAT6. We first confirm the positive correlated expression pattern between PVT1 and miR‐1207‐5p by observing consistent induced expression by estrogen, and overexpression in breast cancer cell lines and breast cancer patient specimens. Moreover, silence of PVT1 also decreased miR‐1207‐5p expression. Furthermore, increased miR‐1207‐5p expression promoted, while decreased miR‐1207‐5p expression suppressed, cell proliferation, colony formation, and cell cycle progression in breast cancer cell lines. Mechanistically, a novel target of miR‐1207‐5p,STAT6, was identified by a luciferase reporter assay. Overexpression of miR‐1207‐5p decreased the levels of STAT6, which activated CDKN1A and CDKN1B to regulate the cell cycle. We also confirmed the reverse correlation of miR‐1207‐5p and STAT6 expression levels in breast cancer samples. Therefore, our findings reveal that PVT1‐derived miR‐1207‐5p promotes the proliferation of breast cancer cells by targeting STAT6, which in turn controls CDKN1A and CDKN1B expression. These findings suggest miR‐1207‐5p might be a potential target for breast cancer therapy.

BackgroundIntracavitary electrocardiogram (IC ECG) guidance emerges as a new technique for peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) placement and demonstrates many potential advantages in recent observational studies.AimsTo determine whether IC ECG-guided PICCs provide more accurate positioning of catheter tips compared to conventional anatomical landmarks in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy.MethodsIn this multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled study (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02409589), a total of 1,007 adult patients were assigned to receive either IC ECG guidance (n = 500) or anatomical landmark guidance (n = 507) for PICC positioning. The confirmative catheter tip positioning x-ray data were centrally interpreted by independent radiologists. All reported analyses in the overall population were performed on an intention-to-treat basis. Analyses of pre-specified subgroups and a selected large subpopulation were conducted to explore consistency and accuracy.ResultsIn the IC ECG-guided group, the first-attempt success rate was 89.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 86.5% to 91.9%), which was significantly higher than 77.4% (95% CI, 73.7% to 81.0%) in the anatomical landmark group (P < 0.0001). This trend of superiority of IC ECG guidance was consistently noted in almost all prespecified patient subgroups and two selected large subpopulations, even when using optimal target rates for measurement. In contrast, the superiority nearly disappeared when PICCs were used via the left instead of right arms (interaction P-value = 0.021). No catheter-related adverse events were reported during the PICC intra-procedures in either group.ConclusionsOur findings indicated that the IC ECG-guided method had a more favorable positioning accuracy versus traditional anatomical landmarks for PICC placement in adult patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. Furthermore, there were no significant safety concerns reported for catheterization using the two techniques.