circ_0134120: a new frontier in understanding postmenopausal osteoporosis pathogenesis

Abstract

Postmenopausal osteoporosis (OP) is a prevalent skeletal disease with not fully understood molecular mechanisms. This study aims to investigate the role of circular RNA (circRNA) in postmenopausal OP and to elucidate the potential mechanisms of the circRNA–miRNA–mRNA regulatory network. We obtained circRNA and miRNA expression profiles from postmenopausal OP patients from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. By identifying differentially expressed circRNAs and miRNAs, we constructed a circRNA–miRNA–mRNA network and identified key genes associated with OP. Further, through a range of experimental approaches, including dual-luciferase reporter assays, RNA pull-down experiments, and qRT-PCR, we examined the roles of circ_0134120, miR-590-5p, and STAT3 in the progression of OP. Our findings reveal that the interaction between circ_0134120 and miR-590-5p in regulating STAT3 gene expression is a key mechanism in OP, suggesting the circRNA–miRNA–mRNA network is a potential therapeutic target for this condition.