miR-338-3p inhibits HIF-1α to Attenuate Nucleus Pulposus Cell Proliferation and Promote Apoptosis Through the Hippo-YAP Pathway

Abstract

The proliferation and apoptosis of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells (NPCs) play a crucial role in intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD). we aimed to discover the role of miRNA-induced IDD. We analyzed the miRNA expression of three NP tissues from IDD patients and three normal NP samples using the GEO2R tool, and The results revealed that miR-338-3p was upregulated in NPCs from IDD patients. miR-338-3p suppressed NPCs proliferation, and the related proteins PCNA and Ki-67 were downregulated, as demonstrated via western blotting. miR-338-3p promoted apoptosis. Furthermore, we predicted that HIF-1α was targeted by miR-338-3p, using the miRDB database, and this target was validated via dual luciferase assay. HIF-1α reversed miR-338-3p-induced NPCs proliferation and apoptosis. The Hippo-YAP pathway activation proteins YAP, CTGF, and PCNA were upregulated, unlike the inhibitory YAP phosphorylation. In conclusions, our results suggestive that miR-338-3p inhibited HIF-1α/ Hippo-YAP pathway to attenuate NPCs proliferation and apoptosis.