CircHIPK3/miR-124 affects angiogenesis in early-onset preeclampsia via CPT1A-mediated fatty acid oxidation.

Abstract Multiple theories have been proposed to explain the pathogenesis of early-onset preeclampsia (EOPE), and angiogenic dysfunction is an important part of the pathogenesis. Carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT1A) is a key rate-limiting enzyme in the metabolic process of fatty acid oxidation (FAO). FAO regulates endothelial cell (EC) proliferation during vascular germination and is also essential for ab initio deoxyribonucleotide synthesis, but its role in EOPE needs to be further elucidated. In the present study, we investigated its functional role in EOPE by targeting the circHIPK3/miR-124-3p/CPT1A axis. In our study, reduced expression of circHIPK3 and CPT1A and increased expression of miR-124-3p in placental tissues from patients with EOPE were associated with EC dysfunction. Here, we confirmed that CPT1A regulates fatty acid oxidative activity, cell proliferation, and tube formation of ECs by regulating FAO. Functionally, knockdown of circHIPK3 suppressed EC angiogenesis by inhibiting CPT1A-mediated fatty acid oxidative activity, which was ameliorated by CPT1A overexpression. In addition, circHIPK3 regulates CPT1A expression by sponging miR-124-3p. Hence, circHIPK3 knockdown reduced the fatty acid oxidative process in ECs by sponging miR-124-3p in a CPT1A-dependent manner and inhibited EC proliferation and tube formation, which may have led to aberrant angiogenesis in EOPE. Thus, strategies targeting CPT1A-driven FAO may be a promising approach for the treatment of EOPE.