Table 1.
Primers used in reverse transcription and quantitative real-time PCR.
Figure 1.
Down-regulation of miR-26a during LR. The expression of miR-26a in the regenerating liver from 24 h to 168 h after 70% PH was assessed by qRT-PCR analysis. MiR-26a levels were standardized to that of U6. All data were obtained from at least three independent experiments and are shown as the means ± S.D., *P<0.05, **P<0.01.
Figure 2.
Transfection efficiency and in vivo bioluminescence imaging. (A) Expression of miR-26a after transfection with different concentrations of Ad5-anti-miR-26a-LUC, Ad5-LUC, or no transfection (control). (B) Expression of miR-26a after transfection with different concentrations of Ad5-miR-26a-LUC, Ad5-LUC, or no transfection (control). The degree of bioluminescence was the greatest in Ad5-anti-miR-26a-LUC (AA) group (C), less in Ad5-LUC (AL) group (E), and the weakest in Ad5-miR-26a-LUC (AM) group (D). The mice in control group showed no bioluminescence image (F). *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001.
Figure 3.
Anti-miR-26a expression promotes liver regeneration and improves liver function in mice. (A) LBWR of mice transfected with Ad5-anti-miR-26a-LUC (AA), Ad5-miR-26a-LUC (AM) and Ad5-LUC (AL). There was an increased LBWR in AA group compared to AL group (P<0.001), and a decreased LBWR in AM group can be seen compared with AL group at 120 h (P<0.001). (B) The Ki-67 proliferation index (PI) after 70% PH and transfection, was significantly higher in AA group compared with AL group (P<0.001), while lower in AM group in comparison with AL group (P<0.001). (C-E) Liver function tests after transfection, worse liver functions could be observed in AM group compared with AL group. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001.
Figure 4.
CCND2 and CCNE2 are potential targeted genes of miR-26a. (A) Anti-miR-26a expression increased the mRNA expression of CCND2 and CCNE2 as shown by qRT-PCR. Conversely, miR-26a over-expression declined the mRNA expression of the two genes. The mRNA expression of CCNE1 and CDK6 showed no obvious change. (B) Anti-miR-26a expression up-regulated the protein expression of CCND2 and CCNE2. In contrast, miR-26a over-expression down-regulated the protein expression of CCND2 and CCNE2. The protein expression of CCNE1 and CDK6 showed no obvious change. (C and D) Expression of CCND1 and CCND3 in both mRNA and protein level showed no obvious changes. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001.