Comprehensive analysis of the differential expression profile of microRNAs in rats with spinal cord injury treated by electroacupuncture

Abstract

abnormal microrna (mirna) expression has been implicated in spinal cord injury (Sci), but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. To observe the effect of electroacupuncture (ea) on mirna expression profiles in Sci rats and investigate the potential mechanisms involved in this process, Sprague-dawley rats were divided into sham, Sci and Sci+ea groups (n=6 each). Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) scoring and hematoxylin-eosin staining of cortical tissues were used to evaluate spinal cord recovery with ea treatment 21 days post-surgery across the three groups. To investigate mirna expression profiles, 6 Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into Sci and Sci+ea groups (n=3 in each group) and examined using next-generation sequencing. integrated mirna-mrna-pathway network analysis was performed to elucidate the interaction network of the candidate mirnas, their target genes and the involved pathways. Behavioral scores suggested that hindlimb motor functions improved with ea treatments. apoptotic indices were lower in the Sci+ea group compared with the Sci group. it was also observed that 168 mirnas were differentially expressed between the Sci and Sci+ea groups, with 29 upregulated and 139 downregulated mirnas in the Sci+ea group. changes in mirna expression are involved in Sci physiopathology, including inflammation and apoptosis. reverse transcription-quantitative Pcr measurement of the five candidate mirnas, namely rno-mir-219a-5p, rno-mir-486, rno-mir-136-5p, rno-mir-128-3p, and rno-mir-7b, was consistent with rna sequencing data. integrated mirna-mrna-pathway analysis suggested that the MaPK, Wnt and nF-κB signaling pathways were involved in ea-mediated recovery from Sci. The present study evaluated the miRNA expression profiles involved in ea-treated Sci rats and demonstrated the potential mechanism and functional role of mirnas in Sci in rats.

Electroacupuncture-Modulated MiR-106b-5p Expression Enhances Autophagy by Targeting Beclin-1 to Promote Motor Function Recovery After Spinal Cord Injury in Rats

“…For example, miR-21 has been found to play an important role in limiting secondary neuronal apoptosis following an SCI [ 24 ], while Zhou et al [ 33 ] demonstrated that miR-27a can facilitate SCI recovery by regulating the autophagy flux for neuroprotection. Moreover, EA treatment of SCIs in rats induces changes to miRNA expression profiles, as also demonstrated in previous studies [ 34 ]. MiR-106b-5p, a member of the 106b-25 cluster and a paralogue of the 17–92 cluster [ 35 ], has been well-studied in many diseases, including breast cance [ 35 ], and acute renal injury [ 36 ].…”

Electroacupuncture-Regulated miR-34a-3p/PDCD6 Axis Promotes Post-Spinal Cord Injury Recovery in Both In Vitro and In Vivo Settings

“…However, the mechanism underlying the therapeutic effect EA is not well elucidated. A previous study investigated the expression profiles of miRNAs involved in EA-treated SCI rats and demonstrated the potential mechanism and functional role as well as the potential as therapeutic targets of miRNAs in SCI rats [ 56 ]. Studies have also indicated that EA downregulates the expression of miR-449a to increase NSCs proliferation and promote neuron survival [ 17 ].…”