Agriculture College, Yanbian University, Yanji, Jilin, China.
Faculty of Agriculture and Life Science, Hirosaki University, Hirosaki, Japan.
Horm Metab Res. 2021 Jan;53(1):63-70. doi: 10.1055/a-1276-1602. Epub 2020 Nov 2.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, single-stranded, noncoding RNAs ~21 to ~23 nucleotides in length and have become a popular research topic in recent years due to their regulation of gene expression and many physiological processes, including fat metabolism; however, the precise functional mechanisms underlying their regulation of fat metabolism are not fully understood. Here, we identified miR-381, which specifically targets the 3' untranslated region (3' UTR) of () , and verified the mechanism regulating its expression and participation in adipogenesis. We used a dual luciferase-reporter assay and transfection-mediated miR-381 overexpression and inhibition in Yanbian yellow cattle preadipocytes to investigate the role of miR-381 in adipogenesis. The results showed that miR-381 directly targets the 3' UTR of and downregulates its expression. Additionally, miR-381 overexpression using an miRNA mimic promoted triglyceride accumulation and upregulated adipogenic peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ () and CCAAT enhancer-binding protein α () at both the protein and mRNA levels, whereas miR-381 inhibition produced the opposite effect. These results indicated that miR-381 regulates the differentiation of Yanbian yellow cattle preadipocytes by inhibiting expression, thereby highlighting the importance of miRNA-mediated regulation of adipogenesis. Furthermore, our findings suggested that miR-381 and its target gene(s) might represent new targets for investigating intramuscular fat deposits in cattle and treating human obesity.
微小 RNA（miRNAs）是长度约为 21 到 23 个核苷酸的小单链非编码 RNA，近年来由于它们对基因表达和许多生理过程（包括脂肪代谢）的调节作用而成为热门研究课题；然而，它们调节脂肪代谢的确切功能机制尚不完全清楚。在这里，我们鉴定了 miR-381，它专门靶向（）的 3'非翻译区（3'UTR），并验证了调节其表达和参与脂肪生成的机制。我们使用双荧光素酶报告基因检测和转染介导的 miR-381 过表达和抑制在延边黄牛前体脂肪细胞中，研究了 miR-381 在脂肪生成中的作用。结果表明，miR-381 直接靶向和下调其表达。此外，使用 miRNA 模拟物过表达 miR-381 促进了延边黄牛前体脂肪细胞中甘油三酯的积累，并上调了脂肪生成过氧化物酶体增殖物激活受体 γ（）和 CCAAT 增强子结合蛋白α（）的蛋白和 mRNA 水平，而 miR-381 抑制则产生相反的效果。这些结果表明，miR-381 通过抑制的表达来调节延边黄牛前体脂肪细胞的分化，从而强调了 miRNA 介导的脂肪生成调节的重要性。此外，我们的研究结果表明，miR-381 及其靶基因可能代表了研究牛肌肉内脂肪沉积和治疗人类肥胖的新靶点。
