RNAi inhibition of mineralocorticoid receptors prevents the development of cold-induced hypertension

2008 ◽  
Vol 294 (4) ◽  
pp. H1880-H1887 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhongjie Sun ◽  
Mahajoub Bello-Roufai ◽  
Xiuqing Wang

The objective was to determine whether the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) plays a role in the initiation and development of cold-induced hypertension (CIH) by testing the hypothesis that the RNA interference (RNAi) inhibition of the MR attenuates CIH. The recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) carrying a short-hairpin small-interference RNA for MR (MRshRNA) or a scrambled sequence (ControlshRNA) was constructed. Six groups of albino mice were used (6 mice/group). Three groups were exposed to cold (6.7°C), whereas the remaining three groups were kept at room temperature (RT; warm) as controls. In each temperature condition, three groups received an intravenous injection of MRshRNA, ControlshRNA, or virus-free PBS, respectively, before exposure to cold. The viral complexes (0.35 × 1011 particles/mouse, 0.5 ml) or PBS (0.5 ml) was delivered into the circulation via the tail vein. The blood pressure (BP) of the mice treated with ControlshRNA or PBS increased significantly during exposure to cold, whereas the BP of the cold-exposed MRshRNA-treated mice did not increase and remained at the level of the control group kept at RT. Thus AAV delivery of MRshRNA prevented the initiation of CIH. MRshRNA significantly attenuated cardiac and renal hypertrophy. MRshRNA decreased the cold-induced increase in MR protein expression to the control level in the hypothalamus, kidneys, and heart, indicating an effective prevention of the cold-induced upregulation of MR. RNAi inhibition of MR resulted in significant decreases in the plasma level of norepinephrine, plasma renin activity, and plasma level of aldosterone in cold-exposed mice. MR played a critical role in the initiation and development of CIH. AAV delivery of MRshRNA may serve as a new approach for the prevention of cold-induced hypertension.

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feixiang Wu ◽  
Yantao Liu ◽  
Xin Lv ◽  
Xuerong Miao ◽  
Yuming Sun ◽  
...  

Objective. The present study was to investigate the feasibility of adenovirus-mediated small interference RNA (siRNA) targeting Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) gene in ameliorating lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced acute lung injury (ALI).Methods.In vitro, alveolar macrophages (AMs) were treated with Ad-siTLR4 and Ad-EFGP, respectively, for 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h, and then with LPS (100 ng/mL) for 2 h, and the function and expression of TLR4 were evaluated.In vivo, rats received intratracheal injection of 300 μL of normal saline (control group), 300 μL of Ad-EGFP (Ad-EGFP group), or 300 μL of Ad-siTLR4 (Ad-siTLR4 group) and then were intravenously treated with LPS (50 mg/kg) to induce ALI.Results. Ad-siTLR4 treatment significantly reduced TLR4 expression and production of proinflammatory cytokines following LPS treatment bothin vitroandin vivo. Significant alleviation of tissue edema, microvascular protein leakage, and neutrophil infiltration was observed in the AdsiTLR4-treated animals.Conclusion. TLR4 plays a critical role in LPS-induced ALI, and transfection of Ad-siTLR4 can effectively downregulate TLR4 expressionin vitroandin vivo, accompanied by alleviation of LPS-induced lung injury. These findings suggest that TLR4 may serve as a potential target in the treatment of ALI and RNA interfering targeting TLR4 expression represents a therapeutic strategy.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (21) ◽  
pp. 11827
Author(s):  
Chao Chen ◽  
Muhammad Jamil Ahmad ◽  
Tingzhu Ye ◽  
Chao Du ◽  
Xinxin Zhang ◽  
...  

Cathepsin B (CTSB), a lysosomal cysteine protease’s high expression and activity, has been reported to cause poor-quality embryos in porcine and bovine. Nevertheless, CTSB functions in mice granulosa cells remain to explore. To discuss the CTSB functional role in follicular dynamics, we studied apoptosis, proliferation, cell cycle progression, and related signaling pathways in primary mouse granulosa cells transfected with small interference RNA specific to CTSB (siCTSB) for 48 h. Further, mRNA and protein expression of cell proliferation regulators (Myc and cyclin D2), apoptosis regulators (caspase 3, caspase 8, TNF-α, and Bcl2), steroidogenesis-related genes (FSHR and CYP11A1), and autophagy markers (LC3-I and ATG5) were investigated. In addition, the effect of CTSB on steroidogenesis and autophagy was also examined. Flow cytometry analysis assay displayed that silencing of CTSB decreased the early and total apoptosis rate by downregulating TNF-α, caspase 8, and caspase 3, and upregulating Bcl2. By regulating Myc and cyclin D2 expression and activating the p-Akt and p-ERK pathways, CTSB knockdown increased GC proliferation and number. A significant decline in estradiol and progesterone concentrations was observed parallel to a significant decrease in autophagy-related markers LC3-I and ATG5 compared to the control group. Herein, we demonstrated that CTSB serves as a proapoptotic agent and plays a critical role in folliculogenesis in female mice by mediating apoptosis, autophagy, proliferation, and steroidogenesis. Hence, CTSB could be a potential prognostic agent for female infertility.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (31) ◽  
pp. 2816-2823 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dario Di Stasio ◽  
Laura Mosca ◽  
Alberta Lucchese ◽  
Donatella Delle Cave ◽  
Hiromichi Kawasaki ◽  
...  

Background: microRNAs play a critical role in auto-immunity, cell proliferation, differentiation and cell death. miRNAs are present in all biological fluids, and their expression is essential in maintaining regular immune functions and preventing autoimmunity, whereas miRNA dysregulation may be associated with the pathogenesis of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Oral lichen planus (OLP) is an inflammatory disease mediated by cytotoxic T cells attack against epithelial cells. The present study aims to perform a specific microRNA expression profile through the analysis of saliva in this disease. Methods: The study group was formed by five patients (mean age 62.8±1.98 years; 3 females/2 males) affected by oral lichen planus and control group by five healthy subjects (mean age 59.8 years±2.3; 3 females/ 2 males); using a low-density microarray analysis, we recorded a total of 98 differentially expressed miRNAs in the saliva of patients with oral lichen planus compared to the control group. The validation was performed for miR-27b with qRT-PCR in all saliva samples of oral lichen planus group. Results: 89 miRNAs were up-regulated and nine down-regulated. In details, levels of miR-21, miR- 125b, miR-203 and miR15b were increased (p<0.001) in study group while levels of miR-27b were about 3.0-fold decreased compared to controls (p<0.001) of miR-27b expression in OLP saliva. QRTPCR validation confirmed the down regulation of miR-27b in all saliva samples. Conclusions: Collecting saliva samples is a non-invasive procedure and is well accepted by all patients. microRNAs can be readily isolated and identified and can represent useful biomarkers of OLP.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Isela Álvarez-González ◽  
Scarlett Camacho-Cantera ◽  
Patricia Gómez-González ◽  
Michael J. Rendón Barrón ◽  
José A. Morales-González ◽  
...  

AbstractWe evaluated the duloxetine DNA damaging capacity utilizing the comet assay applied to mouse brain and liver cells, as well as its DNA, lipid, protein, and nitric oxide oxidative potential in the same cells. A kinetic time/dose strategy showed the effect of 2, 20, and 200 mg/kg of the drug administered intraperitoneally once in comparison with a control and a methyl methanesulfonate group. Each parameter was evaluated at 3, 9, 15, and 21 h postadministration in five mice per group, except for the DNA oxidation that was examined only at 9 h postadministration. Results showed a significant DNA damage mainly at 9 h postexposure in both organs. In the brain, with 20 and 200 mg/kg we found 50 and 80% increase over the control group (p ≤ 0.05), in the liver, the increase of 2, 20, and 200 mg/kg of duloxetine was 50, 80, and 135% in comparison with the control level (p ≤ 0.05). DNA, lipid, protein and nitric oxide oxidation increase was also observed in both organs. Our data established the DNA damaging capacity of duloxetine even with a dose from the therapeutic range (2 mg/kg), and suggest that this effect can be related with its oxidative potential.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamed Nosrati ◽  
Manijeh Hamzepoor ◽  
Maryam Sohrabi ◽  
Massoud Saidijam ◽  
Mohammad Javad Assari ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) can accumulate in various organs after oral exposure. The main objective of the current study is to evaluate the renal toxicity induced by AgNPs after repeated oral exposure and to determine the relevant molecular mechanisms. Methods In this study, 40 male Wistar rats were treated with solutions containing 30, 125, 300, and 700 mg/kg of AgNPs. After 28 days of exposure, histopathological changes were assessed using hematoxylin-eosin (H&E), Masson’s trichrome, and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining. Apoptosis was quantified by TUNEL and immunohistochemistry of caspase-3, and the level of expression of the mRNAs of growth factors was determined using RT-PCR. Results Histopathologic examination revealed degenerative changes in the glomeruli, loss of tubular architecture, loss of brush border, and interrupted tubular basal laminae. These changes were more noticeable in groups treated with 30 and 125 mg/kg. The collagen intensity increased in the group treated with 30 mg/kg in both the cortex and the medulla. Apoptosis was much more evident in middle-dose groups (i.e., 125 and 300 mg/kg). The results of RT-PCR indicated that Bcl-2 and Bax mRNAs upregulated in the treated groups (p < 0.05). Moreover, the data related to EGF, TNF-α, and TGF-β1 revealed that AgNPs induced significant changes in gene expression in the groups treated with 30 and 700 mg/kg compared to the control group. Conclusion Our observations showed that AgNPs played a critical role in in vivo renal toxicity.


Parasite ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Jing Ding ◽  
Xiaolei Liu ◽  
Bin Tang ◽  
Xue Bai ◽  
Yang Wang ◽  
...  

Excretory/Secretory Products (ESPs) of the nematode Trichinella spiralis contain antitumor-active substances that inhibit tumor growth. Mature dendritic cells (DCs) play a critical role in the antitumor immunity of the organism. As pathogen-derived products, it ought to be discussed whether T. spiralis ESPs will reduce the antitumor effect of mature DCs from the host before it is applied to patients’ tumors. Therefore, the aim of this work was to evaluate the immunological effect of DCs stimulated by T. spiralis ESPs in H22 tumor-bearing mice. H22 tumor model mice in this study were randomly divided into four groups according to the treatment: PBS control group, ESP group, DCs group, and DCs stimulated with T. spiralis ESP (ESP+DCs group). The antitumor effect was evaluated by tumor inhibition rate and cytokine detection using ELISA. The results showed significant inhibition in tumor growth in the ESP+DCs, DCs and ESP groups when compared with the PBS control group (p < 0.01, p < 0.01, and p < 0.05, respectively). However, no significant difference was observed on tumor inhibition rates between the ESP+DCs and DCs groups. The decrease in IL-4, IL-6, and IL-10, and the increase in IFN-γ between the DCs and ESP+DCs groups were also not significant. Therefore, DCs stimulated by ESP did not reduce the antitumor effect of mature DCs, which demonstrated that the T. spiralis ESP would not affect the antitumor effect of mature DCs by modulating the immune response of the host, and that ESPs are safe in antitumor immunology when applied in a tumor model mice.


2009 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nagato Kuriyama ◽  
Yoshinari Nagakane ◽  
Akiko Hosomi ◽  
Tomoyuki Ohara ◽  
Takashi Kasai ◽  
...  

Background: Platelet-derived microparticles (PDMPs) have attracted attention as blood coagulation-promoting, endothelial cell-activating factors. The objective of this study was to determine the parameters associated with elevated PDMP levels and examine their relationship with atherosclerotic lesions of main intracranial and extracranial arteries. Participants and Methods: Participants included a control group (C) of 61 patients with no apparent cerebral vascular lesions and 110 patients with acute-phase cerebral infarction, consisting of a small-vessel occlusion group (S) of 34 patients, a large-artery atherosclerosis group (L) of 41 patients, a cardioembolism group (CE) of 20 patients, and a stroke of undetermined etiology group (U) of 15 patients. Platelet-derived microparticle levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) at the time of admission, and the patients were reclassified into group CP (control level PDMPs), consisting of 70 patients with control PDMP levels, and group HP (high PDMPs), consisting of 40 patients with elevated PDMP levels. All patients underwent cranial magnetic resonance (MR) and carotid ultrasound examinations. Results: Platelet-derived microparticle levels were significantly higher in groups S and L than in group C (P < .01). Concomitant intima-media thickness (IMT; odds ratio [OR] = 1.29, P < .05) and concomitant intracranial stenosis (OR = 3.95, P < .01) were significantly correlated with elevated PDMP levels. Fibrinogen and high-sensitivity CRP levels were significantly higher in group HP than in group CP. Conclusion: Alterations in PDMP levels correlated with the presence of atherothrombotic lesions, and PDMP levels are expected to be useful as a clinical indicator, reflecting the presence of intracranial atherosclerotic lesions in the acute phase of cerebral infarction.


Hypertension ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 36 (suppl_1) ◽  
pp. 723-723
Author(s):  
Qing-Feng Tao ◽  
Diego Martinez vasquez ◽  
Ricardo Rocha ◽  
Gordon H Williams ◽  
Gail K Adler

P165 Aldosterone through its interaction with the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) plays a critical role in the development of hypertension and cardiovascular injury (CVI). Normally, MR is protected by 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11β-HSD) which inactivates glucocorticoids preventing their binding to MR. We hypothesis that if activation of MR by either aldosterone or glucocorticoids induces hypertension and CVI, then the inhibition of 11β-HSD with glycyrrhizin (GA), a natural inhibitor of 11β-HSD, should induce damage similar to that observed with aldosterone. Sprague-Dawley rats were uninephrectomized, and treated for 4 weeks with 1% NaCl (in drinking water) for the control group, 1% NaCl + aldosterone infusion (0.75 μg/h), or 1% NaCl + GA (3.5 g/l in drinking water). After 4 weeks, aldosterone and GA caused significant increases in blood pressure compared to control rats ([mean ± SEM] 211± 9, 205 ± 12, 120 ± 9 mmHg, respectively, p<0.001). Both aldosterone- and GA-treated rats had a significant increase in proteinuria (152.2 ± 8.7 and 107.7 ± 19.5 mg/d, respectively) versus controls (51.2 ± 9.5 mg/d). There was a significant increase (p<0.001) in heart to body weight ratio in the rats treated with aldosterone or GA compared with control (3.92 ± 0.10, 3.98 ± 0.88, and 3.24 ± 0.92 mg/g, respectively). Hearts of GA and aldosterone treated rats showed similar histological changes consisting of biventricular myocardial necrosis and fibrinoid necrosis of small coronary arteries and arterioles. These data suggests that in rodents activation of MR by either aldosterone or corticosterone leads to severe hypertension, vascular injury, proteinuria and myocardial infarction. Thus, 11β-HSD plays an important role in protecting the organism from injury.


Author(s):  
Raheleh Heydari ◽  
Mehrshad Seresht-Ahmadi ◽  
Shahab Mirshahvaladi ◽  
Marjan Sabbaghian ◽  
Anahita Mohseni-Meybodi

Abstract Sperm structural and functional defects are leading causes of male infertility. Patients with immotile sperm disorders suffer from axoneme failure and show a significant reduction in sperm count. The kinesin family member 3B (KIF3B) is one of the genes involved in the proper formation of sperm with a critical role in intraflagellar and intramanchette transport. A part of exon 2 and exons 3–5 of the KIF3B encodes a protein coiled-coil domain that interacts with IFT20 from the IFT protein complex. In the present study, the coding region of KIF3B coiled-coil domain was assessed in 88 oligoasthenoteratozoospermic patients, and the protein expression was evaluated in the mature spermatozoa of the case and control groups using immunocytochemistry and western blotting. According to the results, there was no genetic variation in the exons 3–5 of the KIF3B, but a new A &gt; T variant was identified within the exon 2 in 30 patients, where nothing was detected in the control group. In contrast to healthy individuals, significantly reduced protein expression was observable in oligoasthenoteratozoospermic (OAT) patients carrying variation where protein organization was disarranged, especially in the principal piece and midpiece of the sperm tail. Besides, the protein expression level was lower in the patients’ samples compared to that of the control group. According to the results of the present study the NM_004798.3:c.1032A &gt; T, p.Pro344 = variant; which has been recently submitted to the Clinvar database; although synonymous, causes alterations in the transcription factor binding site, exon skipping, and also exonic splicing enhancer-binding site. Therefore, KIF3B can play an important role in spermatogenesis and the related protein reduction can cause male infertility.


Circulation ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 130 (suppl_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mengyao Jin ◽  
Peng Liu

Introduction: Dendritic cells (DCs) that are known as professional antigen-presenting cells have been found to pre-locate in non-inflammatory arterial wall and increasingly accumulate during atherosclerosis progression. Previous findings suggested that residential DCs in the intima are responsible for capturing modified lipids and forming foam cells during the initiation of atherosclerosis. Hypothesis: DC accumulation and enhanced DC-T cell interaction play a critical role in the initiation of atherosclerosis. Methods: We measured plaque formation, vascular DC accumulation and antigen-specific T cell proliferation mediated by isolated aortic cells in ApoE-/- mice, as well as DTR-CD11c/ApoE-/- or DTR-CD11b/ApoE-/- mice for conditional depletion of DCs or macrophages, respectively. A brief high-fat diet for 10 days was used as a model of initial atherosclerosis. Results: In addition to increased intimal DC accumulation and plaque formation in aortic roots, 10 days of HFD induced T cell infiltration in ApoE-/- mice, compared to those without HFD as the control. Isolated aortic cells from mice with 10-day HFD showed stronger capability in inducing antigen-specific T cell proliferation, compare to the control (HFD: 3.14±0.71%; no HFD: 1.56±0.36%; p=0.022). Single diphtheria toxin (DT) injection at day 1 yielded approximately 50% decrease in intimal DC accumulation, as well as 60% attenuation in plaque formation in DTR-CD11c/ApoE-/- mice after 10-day HFD. Capability of stimulating antigen-specific T cell proliferation was also impaired in aortic cells from DC-depleted mice (DT-treated: 1.62±0.30%; PBS-treated: 3.04±0.59%; p= 0.004), along with reduction in indirect conduction of T cell activation. In contrast, no significant changes were found in plaque formation and DC accumulation in DT-injected DTR-CD11b/ApoE-/- mice after 10 days of HFD, compared to control group. Furthermore, depletion of CD11b+ macrophages in either aortas or spleens didn’t alter capability of inducing antigen-specific T cell proliferation in DT-injected mice. Conclusions: These results suggested that vascular DCs rather than macrophages play a more important role in T cell activation and initiation of atherosclerosis.


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