TSH/miR-17-5p/ZNF367 axis is related to spontaneous abortion in patients with TSH above 2.5 mIU/L

Abstract

Elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) is associated with an increased risk of spontaneous abortion (SA); however, the associated mechanism remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the expression of miRNAs and pathogenesis in the chorionic villi of TSH > 2.5 mIU/L-related SA patients. The chorionic villi were collected from pregnant women in the first trimester with TSH > 2.5 mIU/L with or without SA, as well as TSH < 2.5 mIU/L with or without SA to determine the level of miRNA expression. Differentially expressed miRNAs were confirmed by qRT-PCR in a total of 92 subjects. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8), wound healing, transwell assays, and Western blotting were used to measure cellular biological functions and related proteins in HTR-8/SVneo cells. The potential mechanisms were determined using a Luciferase reporter assay and rescue experiment. Compared with normal pregnant women, miR-17-5p was decreased and zinc finger protein 367 (ZNF367) was upregulated in the chorionic villi of TSH > 2.5 mIU/L-related SA patients. Using HTR-8/SVneo cells, we demonstrated that elevated TSH inhibited miR-17-5p expression, as well as trophoblast migration and invasion. The overexpression of miR-17-5p targeted and inhibited ZNF367 expression promoting the biological function of trophoblasts. Further studies confirmed that ZNF367 interference partially reversed the biological function of the miR-17-5p inhibitor on HTR-8/SVneo cells. Taken together, our results showed that miR-17-5p promoted the biological function of trophoblasts by suppressing ZNF367.