Sufentanil attenuates renal ischemia-reperfusion injury via the lncRNA KCNQ1OT1/miR-211-5p/HMGB1 axis.

Inflammation is one of the most significant pathological changes in ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI). Sufentanil has protective effects on IRI by reducing inflammatory responses. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects and possible mechanisms of sufentanil on renal IRI (RIRI). In this study, sufentanil inhibited hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R)-treated HK-2 proliferation and apoptosis, decreased cleaved caspase3 and increased B-cell Lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) protein expression, inhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and reduced inflammatory factor secretion. Moreover, sufentanil inhibited KCNQ1 overlapping transcript 1 (KCNQ1OT1) expression in H/R-treated HK-2 cells, and pcDNA-KCNQ1OT1 reversed the cell protective effects of sufentanil, whereas miR-211-5p inhibitor here reversed the effects of pcDNA-KCNQ1OT1. Furthermore, miR-211-5p targets the 3'UTR of high mobility group box1 (HMGB1), and HMGB1 reversed the inhibitory effects of miR-211-5p mimic or sufentanil on cell proliferation, apoptosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Mechanistic studies revealed that sufentanil alleviated H/R-treated HK-2 cell injury was mediated by inhibiting the toll like receptor 4 (TLR4)/ myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88)/ nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway. In renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) rats, sufentanil inhibited KCNQ1OT1, HMGB1 and cleaved caspase3 expression, promoted miR-211-5p expression and alleviated inflammatory infiltration in renal tissues.