BACKGROUND
Particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) in air pollution is regarded as a risk factor for
cardiovascular disease (CVDs). Recently, it has become well accepted that
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in PM2.5 impacts human CVDs. However, few studies have shown
miRNAs affected by PAHs play a critical role in transcriptional regulation related to cardiovascular development and disease. MATERIAL AND METHODS Human umbilical cord vein cells (HUVECs) incubated prior to treatment with PAHs at various concentrations (0, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 µg/ml) of PAHs particle solutions were added to the culture medium for 24 h. We performed isolation and sequencing of small RNAs and analysis of small RNA sequences and differential expression. The M3RNA database was used to predict
miRNA-
miRNA interactions. Tools from the DAVID database were used to perform the GO functional analysis of predicted
miRNA target genes. A First-Strand
cDNA Synthesis Kit was used to synthesis
cDNA. RESULTS miRNA155 was revealed as a key regulator in PAHs treatment. The putative targets of upregulated
miRNA in PAHs treatment indicated that the downregulated genes were enriched in biological pathways such as Wnt signaling and ErbB signaling, which are crucial for the development of vasculature. CONCLUSIONS In general, our results suggest that PAHs taken by PM2.5 can decrease cardiovascular-related gene expression through upregulating
miRNA, which may be a new target for
therapy in the future.