MicroRNA and vascular remodelling in acute vascular injury and pulmonary vascular remodelling

Vascular remodelling is an integral pathological process central to a number of cardiovascular diseases. The complex interplay between distinct cell populations in the vessel wall following vascular injury leads to inflammation, cellular dysfunction, pro-growth signals in the smooth muscle cell (SMC) compartment, and the acquisition of a synthetic phenotype. Although the signals for vascular remodelling are diverse in different pathological contexts, SMC proliferation and migration are consistently observed. It is therefore critical to elucidate key mechanisms central to these processes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding sequences of RNA that have the capacity to regulate many genes, pathways, and complex biological networks within cells, acting either alone or in concert with one another. In diseases such as cancer and cardiac disease, the role of miRNA in disease pathogenesis has been documented in detail. In contrast, despite a great deal of interest in miRNA, relatively few studies have directly assessed the role of miRNA in vascular remodelling. The potential for modulation of miRNA to achieve therapeutic benefits in this setting is attractive. Here, we focus on the role of miRNA in vascular inflammation and remodelling associated with acute vascular injury (vein graft disease, angioplasty restenosis, and in-stent restenosis) as well as in vascular remodelling associated with the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension.     

MicroRNAs in Cardiovascular Diseases: Biology and Potential Clinical Applications

Cardiovascular diseases represent one of the major causes for increasing rates of human morbidity and mortality across the world. This reinforces the necessity for the development of novel diagnostics and therapies for the early identification and cure of heart diseases. MicroRNAs are evolutionarily conserved small regulatory non-coding RNAs that regulate the expression of large number of genes. They are involved in several cellular pathophysiological pathways and have been shown to play a significant role in the pathogenesis of many disease states. Recent studies have correlated dysregulated miRNA expressions to diseased hearts and also shown the relevance of miRNA in growth, development, function, and stress responsiveness of the heart. The possibility of exploiting miRNAs to develop diagnostic markers or manipulating them to obtain therapeutic effects is very attractive since they have very specific targets in a particular cellular pathway. In this review we will summarize the role played by miRNAs in the heart and discuss the scope of utilizing miRNA-based strategies in the clinics for the benefit of mankind.     

Novel techniques and targets in cardiovascular microRNA research

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are highly conserved, tiny (～22 nucleotides) non-coding RNAs that have emerged as potent regulators of mRNA translation. miRNAs exhibit fine-tuning of the control of proteins involved in cell signalling (AE) pathways and in vital cellular and developmental processes. miRNAs are expressed in cardiovascular tissues, and multiple functional aspects of miRNAs underscore their key role in cardiovascular (patho)physiology. The development and increasing use of novel molecular biology tools have contributed to the recent success in miRNA research. In the present review, we discuss current updates on important and novel miRNA techniques, including: (i) miRNA screening tools; (ii) bioanalytical target prediction tools; (iii) target validation tools; and (iv) manipulative miRNA expression tools. We also present an update about recently identified miRNA targets that play a key role in cardiovascular development and disorders.     

MicroRNAs in diabetic wound healing: Pathophysiology and therapeutic opportunities

Diabetic wound healing is an incompletely understood pathophysiological state. It comprises a range of potentially devastating and common complications of diabetes mellitus (DM) leading to intractable infections, lower extremity amputations, and associated cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as important regulators in various physiological processes in health and disease through their ability to fine-tune cellular responses. Herein, we summarize the versatile roles of miRNAs implicated in diabetic wound healing in key stages including inflammation, angiogenesis, re-epithelialization, and remodeling. Furthermore, we highlight current evidence through which miRNAs exert control of gene expression and signaling pathways in the reparative response that may provide opportunities for therapeutic intervention for this potentially devastating disease state.