MicroRNA profiling identifies miR-129-5p as a regulator of EMT in tubular epithelial cells

The importance of microRNAs in various diseases has been demonstrated, but their potential role in the pathogenesis of renal fibrosis needs to further research. We have profiled changes in microRNA levels in human kidney proximal tubular cell line HK-2 with TGF-beta treatment and identified significantly altered miRNAs. miR-129-5p, was one of the significant down-regulated miRNAs in experimental models. PDPK1 was a potential target gene of miR-129-5p and luciferase assay analysis identified PDPK1 as a new direct target gene of miR-129-5p. Further research indicated that miR-129-5p suppressed PDPK1 mRNA and protein levels in HK-2 cells. miR-129-5p inhibited EMT via PDPK1 in HK-2 cells. In a conclusion, our findings suggested that miR-129-5p may function as a suppressor in renal fibrosis by targeting PDPK1.