The Role of miR-34a in Tritiated Water Toxicity in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells.

In this work, we investigated the toxic effects of tritiated water (HTO) on the cardiovascular system. We examined the role of microRNA-34a (miR-34a) in DNA damage and repair in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) exposed to HTO. Cell proliferation capacity was evaluated by cell counting, and miR-34a expression was detected using quantitative PCR (QT-PCR).

MiR-34a regulates apoptosis in liver cells by targeting the KLF4 gene.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate gene expression by inhibiting translation or targeting messenger RNA (mRNA) for degradation in a posttranscriptional fashion. In this study, we show that ectopic expression of miR-34a-5p reduces the mRNA and protein levels of Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4). We also demonstrate that miR-34a targets the 3'-untranslated mRNA region of KLF4 and show that overexpression of miR-34a induces a significant level of apoptosis in BNL CL.