Bone mesenchymal stem cells ameliorate ischemia/reperfusion-induced damage in renal epithelial cells via microRNA-223

Background: Recent studies have indicated that microRNA-223 (miR-223) plays a role in the tissue-protective effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). NLR family-pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) was reported to affect a renal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury by exerting a direct effect on the renal tubular epithelium. Therefore, we investigated how miR-223 and NLRP3 might function in kidneys exposed to conditions of ischemia and subsequent reperfusion. Methods: Hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) murine renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs) were cocultured with either MSCs or hypoxia-pretreated MSCs (htMSCs), after which the RTECs were examined for their viability and evidence of apoptosis. Next, miR-223 expression in the MSCs was downregulated to verify that MSCs protected RTECs via the transport of miR-223. Kidney I/R KM/NIH mouse models were created and used for in vivo studies. Results: The results showed that coculture with MSCs significantly increased the viability of RTECs and decreased their rates of apoptosis. The levels of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in samples of coculture supernatants were higher than those in samples of non-coculture supernatants. A bioinformatics analysis revealed a targeting relationship between miR-223 and NLRP3. A dual luciferase assay showed that miR-223 inhibited NLRP3 expression. The htMSCs displayed a protective function associated with an upregulation of miR-223 as induced by Notch1 and the downregulation of NLRP3. Conversely, inhibition of miR-223 impeded the protective effect of MSCs. In the I/R mouse models, injection of either MSCs or htMSCs ameliorated the damage to kidney tissue, while suppression of miR-223 expression in MSCs reduced their protective effect on mouse kidneys. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that miR-223 and NLRP3 play important roles in the treatment of renal tissue injuries with transplanted MSCs.