miR-374 improves cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury by targeting Wnt5a

To date, studies have demonstrated the potential functions of microRNAs in cerebral ischemia reperfusion (IR) injury. Herein, we established a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model in rats and then subjected them to reperfusion to explore the role of microRNA-374 (miR-374) in cerebral IR injury. After reperfusion, the endogenous miR-374 level decreased, and the expression of its target gene, Wnt5a, increased in brain tissues. Intracerebral pretreatment of miR-374 agomir attenuated cerebral damage induced by IR, including neurobehavioral deficits, infarction, cerebral edema and blood-brain barrier disruption. Moreover, rats pretreated with miR-374 agomir showed a remarkable decrease in apoptotic neurons, which was further confirmed by reduced BAX expression as well as increased BCL-2 and BCL-XL expression. A dual-luciferase reporter assay substantiated that Wnt5a was the target gene of miR-374. miR-374 might protect against brain injury by downregulating Wnt5a in rats after IR. Thus, our study provided a novel mechanism of cerebral IR injury from the perspective of miRNA regulation.