Effects of microRNA-17-5p on proliferation and apoptosis of eutopic endometrial stromal cells in patients with endometriosis by targeted regulation of S100A4

Objective To investigate the effects of microRNA-17-5p (miR-17-5p) on proliferation and apoptosis of eutopic endometrial stromal cells (ESC) in endometriosis (EMs) . Method A total of 30 EMs patients admitted to our hospital between February 2016 and June 2017 (EMs group) were enrolled. A contemporary cohort of 30 patients with ovarian cysts or subserosal fibroids undergoing surgery in our hospital were set as the control group. ESC were isolated from the two groups and subject to primary culture. The proliferation and apoptosis of the ESCs were detected by MTT colorimetry and flow cytometry. The relationship between miR-17-5p and S100A4 was verified by dual luciferase reporter system. Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to examine the RNA expression levels of miR-17-5p and S100 calcium binding protein A4 (S100A4) RNA, and the protein expression level of S100A4 was detected by immunoblotting. Results Compared with the control group, the expression level of miR-17-5p in the EMs group was lowered (0.53±0.05 vs 1.01±0.08, P<0.05) , and the mRNA and protein expression levels of S100A4 was increased (5.27±0.25 vs 1.03±0.09, 0.59±0.05 vs 0.23±0.03, both P<0.05) . The results of dual luciferase reporter system showed that miR-17-5p negatively target-regulated the expression of S100A4. Overexpression of miR-17-5p and suppressed S100A4 expression were shown to inhibit the proliferation and induce apoptosis of ESC in EMs. Overexpression of S100A4 was shown to reversely up-regulate the effects of miR-17-5p on proliferation and apoptosis of ESC in EMs. Conclusion miR-17-5p may regulate the proliferation and apoptosis of eutopic ESC in EMs by targeting S100A4. Key words: Endometriosis; miR-17-5p; S100A4; Proliferation; Apoptosis