miR-23a/b regulates the balance between osteoblast and adipocyte differentiation in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells.
Age-related osteoporosis is associated with the reduced capacity of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) to differentiate into osteoblasts instead of adipocytes. However, the molecular mechanisms that decide the fate of BMSCs remain unclear. In our study, microRNA-23a, and microRNA-23b (miR-23a/b) were found to be markedly downregulated in BMSCs of aged mice and humans. The overexpression of miR-23a/b in BMSCs promoted osteogenic differentiation, whereas the inhibition of miR-23a/b increased adipogenic differentiation. Transmembrane protein 64 (Tmem64), which has expression levels inversely related to those of miR-23a/b in aged and young mice, was identified as a major target of miR-23a/b during BMSC differentiation. In conclusion, our study suggests that miR-23a/b has a critical role in the regulation of mesenchymal lineage differentiation through the suppression of Tmem64.
Department of Endocrinology, The Xiangya Hospital of Central South University , Changsha 410008, China.
Qi
Q
Guo
Department of Gerontology, The Xiangya Hospital of Central South University , Changsha 410008, China.
Yusi
Y
Chen
Department of Endocrinology, The Xiangya Hospital of Central South University , Changsha 410008, China.
Lijuan
L
Guo
Department of Endocrinology, The Xiangya Hospital of Central South University , Changsha 410008, China.
Tiejian
T
Jiang
Department of Orthopedics, The Xiangya Hospital of Central South University , Changsha 410008, China.
Zhangyuan
Z
Lin