title: Differentially expressed microRNA identification and target gene function analysis in starvation-induced autophagy of AR42J pancreatic acinar cells.
abstract: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common acute digestive tract disease, with increased morbidity and mortality, and an unclear pathogenesis. Trypsinogen activation in pancreatic acinar cells may be the primary mechanism underlying the development of AP. Previous studies reported that autophagy participates in the formation of acinar cell vacuoles in AP and in the process of trypsinogen activation as an important cause of AP. Furthermore, microRNAs (miRNAs) maintain the autophagy process by regulating the expression of autophagy‑associated genes. In the present study, an in vitro pancreatic acinar cell autophagy model was established using the AR42J starvation‑induced pancreatic acinar cell line. Twenty differentially expressed microRNAs were identified using miRNA microarray. Bioinformatics analysis was used to predict the target genes of miRNAs and analyze the functions of differentially expressed miRNAs. The results demonstrated that only the downregulated miRNA rno‑miR‑148b‑3p predicted 593 target genes with a statistical significance (P<0.05), from which 10 genes were autophagy‑associated. The results of gene ontology and pathway analyses demonstrated that the target genes of miRNAs were enriched in the Response to insulin stimulus, Regulation of cell death and the Insulin signaling pathways (P<0.05, FDR<0.05). In addition, protein‑protein interaction network analysis demonstrated a widespread interaction among the 593 target genes. The results of the present study may provide novel targets for research on the mechanisms of autophagy-promoted AP and AP treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Hospital of Qiqihar, Qiqihar, Heilongjiang 161005, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Duanping
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xianzhi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Weihui
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Dongbo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Xue
mesh_terms: D061354:Acinar Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001343:Autophagy / Q000235:genetics*; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D063990:Gene Ontology; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics*; D010179:Pancreas / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D025941:Protein Interaction Mapping; D060066:Protein Interaction Maps; D034622:RNA Interference; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics*; D051381:Rats; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D035683:MicroRNAs; D012333:RNA, Messenger