The most significant and sensitive
antigen protein that causes
diarrhea in weaned pigs is
soybean 7S globulin. Therefore, identifying the primary target for minimizing intestinal damage brought on by
soybean 7S globulin is crucial.
MicroRNA (
miRNA) is closely related to intestinal epithelium's homeostasis and integrity. However, the change of
miRNAs' expression and the function of
miRNAs in
Soybean 7S globulin injured-IPEC-J2 cells are still unclear. In this study, the
miRNAs' expression profile in
soybean 7S globulin-treated IPEC-J2 cells was investigated. Fifteen
miRNAs were expressed differently. The differentially expressed
miRNA target genes are mainly concentrated in signal release, cell connectivity, transcriptional inhibition, and Hedgehog signaling pathway. Notably, we noticed that the most significantly decreased
miRNA was ssc-miR-221-5p after
soybean 7S globulin treatment. Therefore, we conducted a preliminary study on the mechanisms of ssc-miR-221-5p in
soybean 7S globulin-injured IPEC-J2 cells. Our research indicated that ssc-miR-221-5p may inhibit ROS production to alleviate
soybean 7S globulin-induced apoptosis and
inflammation in IPEC-J2 cells, thus protecting the cellular mechanical barrier, increasing cell proliferation, and improving cell viability. This study provides a theoretical basis for the prevention and control of
diarrhea of weaned piglets.