Decreased miR-455-3p promotes diabetic retinopathy progression via modulating retinal endothelial proliferation and apoptosis

Background: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the common ocular complications of diabetes. Recent studies have also found that miR-455-3p is dysregulated in DR. However, its underlying mechanisms warrant further investigation.

Objective: This study focused on the clinical value of miR-455-3p and its regulatory mechanisms in DR.

Materials and methods: This study recruited 130 patients with DR and 105 healthy individuals. HRMECs treated with high glucose were used to simulate DR conditions. The expression of miR-455-3p and Integrin beta 1(ITGB1) were assessed by qRT-PCR while the target relationship between them was validated via Dual-luciferase reporter assay. ROC curve was utilized for the diagnostic performance. CCK-8 and flow cytometry were employed for proliferation and Apoptosis measurement while ELISA was used for inflammation.

Results: Serum miR-455-3p was found to be distinctly downregulated in patients with DR. The expression of serum miR-455-3p was negatively associated with HbA1c levels in patients with DR. The miR-455-3p also exhibited strong diagnostic potential for distinguishing patients with DR from healthy individuals. In high glucose-induced HRMECs, miR-455-3p was significantly downregulated. miR-455-3p can target and negatively regulate ITGB1, thereby inhibiting the proliferation and inflammation of HRMECs induced by high glucose and promoting cell Apoptosis.

Conclusion: Decreased miR-455-3p promotes diabetic retinopathy progression via negative regulation on ITGB1.

Clinical trial number: Not applicable.