Expression Profiles of Circular RNA in Granulosa Cells from Women with Biochemical Premature Ovarian Insufficiency

Abstract

Aim: To identify the expression profiles and potential functions of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in granulosa cells (GCs) from women with biochemical premature ovarian insufficiency (bPOI). Patients & methods: CircRNAs microarray analysis was performed to GCs from 8 patients with bPOI and 8 control women, followed by qRT-PCR in 15 paired samples. CircRNA–miRNA networks and the prediction of their enriched signaling pathways were conducted by bioinformatics analysis. Results: A total of 133 upregulated and 424 downregulated circRNAs was identified in women with bPOI. We constructed circRNA–miRNA networks and found that the most predominantly enriched signaling pathways were the FoxO signaling pathway and cellular senescence. Conclusion: CircRNAs are differentially expressed in bPOI, which might contribute to the pathogenesis of bPOI.

Keywords::

• circular RNA
• granulosa cell
• microarray
• miRNA
• premature ovarian insufficiency

Supplementary data

author-contributions

X-Y Zhou performed conception and design, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation of data and drafting the article. S-L Chen performed conception and design of the study and revised the article. Y Li and Y-D Liu performed acquisition of data and drafting of the article. J Zhang, X Chen, J Zhe, Q-Y Zhang and Y-X Chen performed analysis and interpretation of data and revised the article. All authors gave their final approval of the version to be published.

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge all the patients who agreed to participate in the study and all the staff of the Center for Reproductive Medicine, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University for their support and cooperation.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This study was funded by the National Key Research & Developmental Program of China (2017YFC1001100), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81671524), the Guangdong Science and Technology Department (2016A020218009), the Clinical Research Startup Program of Southern Medical University by High-level University Construction Funding of Guangdong Provincial Department of Education (LC2016ZD010), and the Clinical Research Program of Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University (2018CR016). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical conduct of research

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University (NFEC-2017-197). Written informed consent was obtained from all patients.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the National Key Research & Developmental Program of China (2017YFC1001100), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81671524), the Guangdong Science and Technology Department (2016A020218009), the Clinical Research Startup Program of Southern Medical University by High-level University Construction Funding of Guangdong Provincial Department of Education (LC2016ZD010), and the Clinical Research Program of Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University (2018CR016). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.