Role and mechanism of miR-144-5p in LPS-induced macrophages

The aim of the present study was to explore the possible role of microRNA-144-5p (miR-144-5p) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the associated mechanism. Following the induction of THP-1 cell differentiation into macrophages by phorbol ester (100 ng/ml) treatment, an in vitro inflammatory model of RA was established by treating the THP-1 macrophages with 1 µg/ml lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The level of miR-144-5p was subsequently measured using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, which found that the expression of miR-144-5p was significantly reduced in LPS-treated THP-1 macrophages. Bioinformatics analysis and a dual-luciferase reporter assay were used to predict and confirm TLR2 as a direct target of miR-144-5p, respectively. Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) was then validated as a target gene of miR-144-5p. The effects of miR-144-5p upregulation and TLR2 silencing on LPS-treated THP-1 macrophages were then determined by transfection with miR-144-5p mimic and TLR2-siRNA, respectively. Cell viability was subsequently measured using a Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, whilst the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8 secreted by THP-1 macrophages was measured using ELISA. Western blotting was performed to measure p65 phosphorylation (p-p65) in the NK-κB signaling pathway. It was found that miR-144-5p overexpression reduced macrophage cell viability, reduced the expression of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8, and reduced the expression of TLR2 and p-p65 compared with the control group. Likewise, TLR2 silencing also reduced macrophage cell viability and reduced the expression of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in THP-1 macrophages. In conclusion, the data from the present study suggested that miR-144-5p overexpression reduced THP-1 macrophage cell viability and inhibited the expression of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in cells, possibly by inhibiting the expression of TLR2 and suppressing the activation of NK-κB signaling. Therefore, miR-144-5p may serve as a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of RA.