microRNA在乙型肝炎病毒感染及相关疾病中的作用

乙型肝炎病毒(hepatitis B virus,HBV)是一种嗜肝性DNA病毒,感染后可导致急性和慢性肝炎,而慢性感染是导致肝硬化、肝癌和肝衰竭的主要病因。在乙型肝炎病毒复制、转录和相关疾病进程中,microRNA(miRNA)扮演着重要的角色。乙型肝炎病毒感染肝细胞后能引起细胞内microRNA表达谱的改变:一方面,microRNA能促进乙型肝炎病毒的转录和诱导宿主细胞向肿瘤细胞转化;另一方面,microRNA也能抑制乙型肝炎病毒包装和复制。重要的是,乙型肝炎病毒的感染能影响宿主血清microRNA的表达。因此,这类特殊的microRNA今后可成为乙型肝炎病毒相关疾病诊断的潜在生物标记物。将对乙型肝炎病毒与宿主microRNA之间相互作用及其相关生物学效应作一综述。     

肝细胞癌患者血清外泌体microRNA表达鉴定

目的:探讨肝癌细胞外泌体中差异表达的microRNAs(miRNAs)在肝细胞癌(HCC)诊断中的应用价值。方法:通过高通量测序筛选肝癌细胞外泌体中差异表达的miRNAs。实时定量PCR验证差异表达分子;检测差异表达的miRNAs在健康人(Health)、慢性乙型肝炎患者(CHB)、肝硬化患者(LC)及乙型肝炎病毒阳性的肝细胞癌患者(HCC)血清外泌体中的表达。结果:高通量测序筛选到肝癌细胞外泌体中差异表达的miRNA共88种,其中58种表达上调,30种表达下调。选择其中8种差异表达的miRNAs进行q RT-PCR验证,结果显示,此8种miRNAs在细胞上清外泌体、细胞内、癌与癌旁组织中的表达趋势与测序结果一致。miR-221-3p和miR-224-5p在HCC组外泌体中的表达水平显著高于Health组、CHB组和LC组(P0.01),miR-124-3p和let-7a-5p在HCC组外泌体中的表达水平显著低于其他各组(P0.05)。四个组中,miR-21-5p、miR-191-5p、miR-34a-5p和miR-122-5p的表达水平不存在显著性差异(P0.05)。结论:血清外泌体中的miR-221-3p、miR-224-5p、miR-124-3p和let-7a-5p可能成为肝细胞癌的候选标志物。     

miR-142靶向DNMT1抑制乳腺癌细胞的迁移

[目的]探讨miR-142下调甲基转移酶DNMT1是否影响乳腺癌细胞的迁移。[方法]过表达miR-142后通过蛋白质印迹和q PCR检测DNMT1的表达。通过荧光素酶报告基因活性测定验证miR-142和DNMT1的3'UTR结合。[结果]在MDA-MB-231细胞中过量表达miR-142后,DNMT1蛋白水平与对照组相比下降,同时,乳腺癌细胞迁移的能力与对照组相比明显下降。敲降DNMT1,乳腺癌细胞迁移的能力与对照组相比也明显下降。并且,miR-142可与DNMT1的3'UTR区域直接结合,抑制DNMT1的表达。[结论]在乳腺癌细胞中,miR-142可通过靶向DNMT1下调其表达来抑制乳腺癌细胞的迁移。     

乙型肝炎病毒复制水平对原发性肝癌发病的影响

目的:探讨乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)复制水平对原发性肝细胞肝癌(HCC)发病的影响.方法:调查226例HCC患者和51例乙型肝炎后肝硬化(LC)患者,分别应用ELISA法和聚合酶链式反应(PCR)检测血清乙型肝炎病毒标志物(HBV-M)和DNA含量.结果:HCC患者中HBsAg阳性率为96.9%;168例HCC患者和51乙型肝炎后LC患者接受HBV DNA定量检测.阳性率分别为85.1%、88.2%,两组患者lg HBV DNA均服从正态分布,HBV DNA的均数为105.49±1.49拷贝/ml、106.15±1.38拷贝/ml,乙型肝炎后LC组患者血清HBV DNA含量较高(P＜0.05);乙型肝炎后LC患者中HBeAg阳性率较HCC组高(P＜0.05);HCC患者血清HBVDNA含量与HBeAg阳性没有明显的相关性(P＞0.05),乙型肝炎后LC患者血清HBV DNA含量与HBeAg阳性密切相关(P＜0.05);两组患者血清HBV DNA含量与性别、年龄、感染HBV的时间等因素均无明显的相关性(均为P＞0.05).结论:我国HCC的发病与HBV感染密切相关,但可能与患者是否存在HBV高水平复制无关.     

乙肝病毒X蛋白诱导肝癌细胞凋亡的信号转导途径

乙型肝炎病毒(hepatitisBvirus,HBV)X蛋白(HBX)与肝癌(hepatocellularcarcinoma,HCC)的发生具有密切的关系.HBX不但具有拮抗细胞凋亡的作用,还具有促进细胞凋亡的作用.为了进一步探讨HBX促细胞凋亡作用的分子机制,通过脂质体转染的方法将携带X基因的真核表达载体pCMVX导入H7402肝癌细胞,使乙肝病毒x基因(HBx)瞬时过量表达.流式细胞仪检测结果显示,在瞬时转染3μgpCMVX质粒后,肝癌细胞发生凋亡.为阐明HBX诱导细胞凋亡的信号转导途径,对HBX与线粒体释放细胞色素c的关系做了初步探讨.通过罗丹明123染色,经流式细胞仪分析,显示在转染HBx基因后细胞线粒体膜电位明显下降,表明HBX可促进细胞色素c从线粒体释放增加.Western印迹检测结果显示,肝癌细胞在导入HBx基因后,细胞凋亡线粒体转导途径中细胞色素c、Apaf1、procaspase3和procaspase9等的表达水平均上调.研究结果说明,HBX可通过影响线粒体凋亡途径促进肝癌细胞凋亡.     

DNA甲基转移酶DNMT3A在人类常见病毒感染中的研究进展

DNA甲基转移酶（DNA methylationtransferases,DNMTs）是哺乳动物建立与维持基因甲基化的酶类家族，参与基因表达和调控等生物学过程。其中DNA甲基转移酶3A(DNA methyltransferase 3 Alpha,DNMT3A)是机体重要DNMTs之一，DNMT3A突变或异常表达所诱导的基因甲基化引起机体相关因子活性失调进而诱发疾病发生，DNMT3A介导的基因甲基化与人类常见病毒感染所致疾病密切相关。本篇综述从人类常见病毒感染宿主的角度出发，对DNMT3A在促进病毒感染与诱发疾病中的作用进行阐述，为进一步探究以DNMT3A为病毒感染性疾病治疗靶点提供参考和思路。     

LINC00261/miR-182-5p/PFN1对乙肝病毒相关性肝细胞癌HepG2.2.5细胞放疗抵抗的影响

[目的]探讨LINC00261调控miR-182-5p/PFN1轴对乙型肝炎病毒相关性肝细胞癌HepG2.2.15细胞放疗抵抗的作用机制。[方法]用1 Gy的X射线处理HepG2.2.15细胞得放疗抵抗细胞HepG2.2.15/R,RT-qPCR检测LINC00261和miR-182-5p表达,Western Blot检测PFN1的表达,CCK-8检测细胞增殖活力,流式细胞术检测细胞凋亡率,彗星实验检测DNA损伤情况;双荧光素酶报告基因实验验证miR-182-5p和LINC00261或PFN1的靶向关系。[结果]LINC00261在HepG2.2.15细胞中低表达(P<0.01),且在其放疗抵抗细胞HepG2.2.15/R中表达更低(P<0.01)。过表达LINC00261抑制HepG2.2.15/R细胞增殖(P<0.01),诱导细胞凋亡(P<0.05)和DNA双链断裂(P<0.01);6 Gy X射线处理可上调过表达LINC00261对HepG2.2.15/R细胞凋亡(P<0.05)和DNA损伤的促进作用(P<0.01)。双荧光素酶报告基因实验证实miR-182-5p与LINC00261或PFN1的靶向关系。过表达LINC00261或过表达PFN1可下调过表达miR-182-5p对HepG2.2.15/R细胞增殖的促进作用(P<0.05)以及对凋亡和DNA损伤的抑制作用(P<0.05)。[结论]过表达LINC00261靶向下调miR-182-5p,促进PFN1表达,促进HepG2.2.15细胞放疗抵抗。     

乙型肝炎病毒变异与肝细胞癌发生关系

乙型肝炎病毒（hepatitisBvirus,HBV）基因组复制时,以病毒前基因组RNA作为模板合成子代病毒DNA,催化该过程的逆转录酶缺乏校对功能,所以HBV易出现变异。近年来,各国学者通过比较肝细胞癌（hepatocellular carcinoma,HCC）患者和非HCC患者的HBV基因序列,发现HBV基本核心启动子区的A1762T／G1764A变异或T1753V变异、增强子Ⅰ区的G1053A或G1229A变异、前S蛋白的F141L变异、前s2区基因缺失变异和x基因的截短变异,分别是HCC的易患因素,而前c区常见的G1896A变异,与HCC的发生无关。增强子Ⅱ区的C1653T变异在c基因HBV感染中可能与发生HCC有关,而在A基因型可能无关。     

DNMT在幽门螺杆菌感染与非感染胃粘膜组织的差异表达

DNA甲基转移酶（DNA methyltransferase, DNMT）是表观遗传学研究热点. 本文分析DNMT1、DNMT2、DNMT3A、DNMT3B、 DNMT3L在成人胃粘膜的表达,并初步研究DNMT抑制剂对胃粘膜细胞的影响. 免疫组织化学法对60例成人胃粘膜组织分析发现 ,5种DNMT均在组织中表达,以DNMT2、DNMT3B表达率较高,DNMT3L、DNMT3A次之,DNMT1较低.进一步分析发现,幽门螺杆菌 感染与非感染的胃粘膜组织有DNMT表达差异,以感染组中DNMT1、DNMT2、DNMT3B表达增强较显著. 免疫荧光法及Western免 疫印迹法对胃粘膜细胞株GES 1分析发现,5种DNMT亦在细胞中表达;且DNMT1为胞核胞浆共表达,DNMT2为胞核表达, DNMT3A、DNMT3B、DNMT3L为胞浆表达. 噻唑蓝比色法研究GES-1发现,DNMT抑制剂5-氮杂-2′-脱氧胞苷可抑制GES 1增 殖,并呈时间剂量依赖. 研究提示,DNMT在成人胃粘膜表达并发挥作用,幽门螺旋杆菌感染可能与DNMT表达异常相关.     

RNAi及DNA芯片分析肝癌细胞系中受DNMT3B调控的下游基因

为揭示DNA甲基转移酶3B（DNMT3B）在肝癌中是否参与了肿瘤的发生,应用Western blotting及细胞免疫化学方法分析DNMT3B蛋白在人的正常肝细胞株、肝癌癌旁细胞株及肝癌癌细胞株中的表达。构建了DNMT3B的RNAi稳定表达的重组载体,并转染人肝癌细胞株SMMC-7721中。以半定量RT-PCR及Western blotting分别鉴定DNM73B RNAi表达载体对内源性DNMT3B的抑制效率。用高通量的cDNA基因芯片分析了SMMC-7721中DNMT3B抑制后有影响的下游基因谱。结果显示,DNMT3B在肝癌细胞株中的表达水平明显高于肝癌癌旁和正常肝细胞株。DNMT3B的RNAi稳定表达重组载体转染SMMC-7721细胞株2个月后,观察到DNMT3B明显受到抑制。cDNA基因芯片分析发现,DNMT3B抑制后诱导26条基因表达下调,115条基因表达上调,包括一些发育相关基因以及肿瘤相关基因,如SNCG、NOTCH1、MBD3、WNT11、MAOA、FACL4等。提示DNMT3B的高表达可能与肝癌的发生有关,并以调控其他相关基因的表达而起作用,包括与发育相关的重要基因。     

miR-101 is down-regulated by the hepatitis B virus x protein and induces aberrant DNA methylation by targeting DNA methyltransferase 3A

The hepatitis B virus x (HBx) protein has been implicated in HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) pathogenesis. However, whether HBx regulates miRNA expression that plays important roles in gene regulation during hepatocarcinogenesis remains unknown. The expression of microRNA-101 (miR-101) in HBV-related HCC tissues and HCC cells was evaluated by real-time PCR. The direct target of miR-101, DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A), was identified in silico and validated using a 3′-UTR reporter assay. miR-101 was functionally characterized in cells with transiently altered miR-101 expression. HBx expression was found to have a significant inverse correlation with miR-101 expression in HBx-expressing HepG2 compared to control HepG2 cells. miR-101 expression was frequently down-regulated in HBV-related HCC tissues compared to adjacent noncancerous hepatic tissues and had a significant inverse correlation with DNMT3A expression in HBV-related HCCs. Further characterization of miR-101 revealed that it negatively regulated DNA methylation partly through targeting DNMT3A. HBx-mediated miR-101 down-regulation and DNMT3A up-regulation supported the enhanced DNA methylation of several tumor-suppressor genes in HBx-expressing cells. Our studies demonstrating the deregulation of miR-101 expression by HBx may provide novel mechanistic insights into HBV-mediated hepatocarcinogenesis and identify a potential miRNA-based targeted approach for treating HBV-related HCC.     

Deregulation between miR-29b/c and DNMT3A Is Associated with Epigenetic Silencing of the CDH1 Gene,Affecting Cell Migration and Invasion in Gastric Cancer

The de-regulation of the miR-29 family and DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A) is associated with gastric cancer (GC). While increasing evidence indicates miR-29b/c could regulate DNA methylation by targeting DNMT3A, it is currently unknown if epigenetic silencing of miR-29b/c via promoter hypermethylation in GC is caused by abnormal expression of DNMT3A. Thus, we aimed to evaluate whether cross-talk regulation exists between miR-29b/c and DNMT3A and whether it is associated with a malignant phenotype in GC. First, wound healing and Transwell assays revealed that miR-29b/c suppresses tumor metastasis in GC. A luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that DNMT3A is a direct target of miR-29b/c. We used bisulfite genomic sequencing to analyze the DNA methylation status of miR-29b/c. The percentage of methylated CpGs was significantly decreased in DNMT3A-depleted cells compared to the controls. Furthermore, the involvement of DNMT3A in promoting GC cell migration was associated with the promoter methylation-mediated repression of CDH1. In 50 paired clinical GC tissue specimens, decreased miR-29b/c was significantly correlated with the degree of differentiation and invasion of the cells and was negatively correlated with DNMT3A expression. Together, our preliminary results suggest that the following process may be involved in GC tumorigenesis. miR-29b/c suppresses the downstream gene DNMT3A, and in turn, miR-29b/c is suppressed by DNMT3A in a DNA methylation-dependent manner. The de-regulation of both of miR-29b/c and DNMT3A leads to the epigenetic silencing of CDH1 and contributes to the metastasis phenotype in GC. This finding reveals that DNA methylation-associated silencing of miR-29b/c is critical for GC development and thus may be a therapeutic target.     

Epigenetic repression of miR-132 expression by the hepatitis B virus x protein in hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatitis B virus x (HBx) protein is involved in the initiation and progression of HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by regulating host protein-coding genes. However, the role of HBx in the epigenetic repression of miRNAs, which play important roles in gene regulation during hepatocarcinogenesis, remains largely unknown. In this study, the expression of miR-132 in HCC cells, HBV-related HCC tissues, and serum were determined using real-time PCR. The level of DNA methylation on the promoter of miR-132 was examined using methylation-specific PCR (MSP). MiR-132 was functionally characterized in HCC cells with transiently altered miR-132 expression. HBx-induced DNA hypermethylation of the promoter of miR-132 was found to be more prevalent in HBx-expressing HepG2 cells than in control cells. Consistently, MiR-132 expression was also more frequently down-regulated in HBV-related HCC tissues than in adjacent noncancerous hepatic tissues and had a significant inverse correlation with HBx expression in HBV-related HCCs. Serum miR-132 levels were found to be significantly correlated with levels in tumor tissue. Finally, proliferation and colony formation of HCC cells were found to be suppressed by miR-132-mediated inhibition of the Akt-signaling pathway in miR132 transfected cells. Our study has demonstrated the epigenetic repression of miR-132 expression through DNA methylation induced by HBx. This work provides novel mechanistic insights into HBV-mediated hepatocarcinogenesis and suggests that miR-132 may be a promising biochemical marker and may have therapeutic applications in HBV-related HCC.     

Hepatitis B virus X protein upregulates alpha-fetoprotein to promote hepatocellular carcinoma by targeting miR-1236 and miR-329

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the most common cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) worldwide, wherein the expression of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) is reactivated to promote tumorgenesis. Hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) protein encoded by the HBV virus X gene has been considered to be oncogenic and implicated in hepatocarcinogenesis. However, the relationship between HBx and abnormal AFP expression in HCC is yet to be fully understood. To explore the potential regulation of HBx on AFP re-expression in HCC, 97 HCC samples of different etiologies were analyzed, and extremely higher serum AFP levels were found in patients with HBsAg⁺. Analyses of HBV-related HCC specimens showed that the expression of AFP was negatively correlated with the levels of miR-1236 and miR-329. Further analyses indicated that HBx promotes the expression of AFP by orchestrating the levels of miR-1236 and miR-329 both in vitro and in vivo. Specifically, miR-1236 and miR-329 bind to the potential target sequences in AFP mRNA 3′-untranslated region to suppress its expression. HBx transfection resulted in the significant decrement of these microRNAs and increment of AFP expression. Moreover, AFP promotes the proliferation of hepatoma cells and attenuates the proapoptotic effect of chemotherapy agents. These findings revealed a novel regulatory mechanism of HBx on the abnormal AFP expression in HCC, which may provide a therapeutic approach for combating HBV-related HCC by targeting the regulation of AFP expression.