Endothelial cells (ECs) apoptosis induced by
oxidized low-density lipoprotein (
ox-LDL) is thought to play a critical role in
atherosclerosis.
MicroRNAs (
miRNAs) are a class of noncoding RNAs that posttranscriptionally regulate the expression of genes involved in diverse cell functions, including differentiation, growth, proliferation, and apoptosis. However, whether
miRNAs are associated with
ox-LDL induced apoptosis and their effect on ECs is still unknown. Therefore, this study evaluated potential
miRNAs and their involvement in ECs apoptosis in response to
ox-LDL stimulation. Microarray and qRT-PCR analysis performed on human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) exposed to
ox-LDL identified 15 differentially expressed (4 up- and 11 down-regulated)
miRNAs. Web-based query tools were utilized to predict the target genes of the differentially expressed
miRNAs, and the potential target genes were classified into different function categories with the gene ontology (GO) term and KEGG pathway annotation. In particular, bioinformatics analysis suggested that
anti-apoptotic protein B-cell CLL/
lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) is a target gene of miR-365, an apoptomir up-regulated by
ox-LDL stimulation in HUVECs. We further showed that transfection of miR-365 inhibitor partly restored Bcl-2 expression at both
mRNA and
protein levels, leading to a reduction of
ox-LDL-mediated apoptosis in HUVECs. Taken together, our findings indicate that
miRNAs participate in
ox-LDL-mediated apoptosis in HUVECs. MiR-365 potentiates
ox-LDL-induced ECs apoptosis by regulating the expression of Bcl-2, suggesting potential novel therapeutic targets for
atherosclerosis.