Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a frequent complication of diabetes and it can lead to
visual impairment and
blindness. However, the mechanism of their regulation remains little known.
circRNAs can function as crucial
competing endogenous RNA, which can sponge corresponding
miRNAs and affect
mRNA expression in various diseases, including DR. In our current research, we observed that
circRNA_0084043 was elevated in high
glucose (HG)-incubated ARPE-19 cells. Then, we focused on whether and how
circRNA_0084043 participated in
retinal vascular dysfunction under conditions diabetes. Apoptosis,
inflammation and oxidative stress are hallmark of DR progression. This work was aimed to investigate the signaling mechanisms of
circRNA_0084043 in these pathogenesis of DR. We discovered loss of
circRNA_0084043 significantly increased cell survival and repressed HG-triggered apoptosis. In addition, knockdown of
circRNA_0084043 remarkably reduced oxidative stress as evidenced by the down-regulated
malondialdehyde (MDA) content, enhanced activities of Super
Oxide Dismutase (SOD) and
Glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX). Addition, silence of
circRNA_0084043 effectively restrained HG-stimulated
inflammation as proved by repressing inflammatory
cytokines Tumor Necrosis Factor α (TNF-α),
Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and Cox-2 in ARPE-19 cells. Subsequently, we successfully predicted that miR-140-3p was a downstream target of
circRNA_0084043, which could be negatively regulated by
circRNA_0084043. Mechanistically, loss of miR-140-3p abrogated the beneficial effects of
circRNA_0084043
siRNA on ARPE-19 cells.
Transforming Growth Factor alpha (TGFA) can exhibit a role in multiple diseases. Taken these together, these data demonstrated that loss of
circRNA_0084043 depressed HG-induced damage via sponging miR-140-3p and regulating TGFA.