lncRNA ZEB1-AS1 inhibits high glucose-induced EMT and fibrogenesis by regulating the miR-216a-5p/BMP7 axis in diabetic nephropathy.

lncRNA ZEB1-AS1 inhibits high glucose-induced EMT and fibrogenesis by regulating the miR-216a-5p/BMP7 axis in diabetic nephropathy. Braz J Med Biol Res. 2020;53(4):e9288 Authors: Meng Q, Zhai X, Yuan Y, Ji Q, Zhang P Abstract Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the leading causes of mortality in diabetic patients. Long non-coding RNA zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1 antisense 1 (ZEB1-AS1) plays a crucial role in the development of various diseases, including DN. However, the molecular mechanism of ZEB1-AS1 in DN pathogenesis remains elusive. An in vitro DN model was established by treating HK-2 cells with high glucose (HG). Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was utilized to detect the expression levels of ZEB1-AS1, microRNA-216a-5p (miR-216a-5p), and bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7). Western blot assay was used to evaluate the protein levels of BMP7, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins, and fibrosis markers. Additionally, the interaction among ZEB1-AS1, miR-216a-5p, and BMP7 was predicted by MiRcode (http://www.mircode.org) and starBase 2.0 (omics_06102, omicX), and confirmed by luciferase reporter assay. ZEB1-AS1 and BMP7 were down-regulated, while miR-216a-5p was highly expressed in kidney tissues of DN patients. Consistently, HG treatment decreased the levels of ZEB1-AS1 and BMP7, whereas HG increased miR-216a-5p expression in HK-2 cells in a time-dependent manner. ZEB1-AS1 upregulation...
Source: Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research - Category: Research Tags: Braz J Med Biol Res Source Type: research