AUTHOR=Wang Yange , Fan Xiaobin , Lei Nanhang , He Xing , Wang Xiaoxi , Luo Xufeng , Zhang Dongmei , Pan Weiqing TITLE=A MicroRNA Derived From Schistosoma japonicum Promotes Schistosomiasis Hepatic Fibrosis by Targeting Host Secreted Frizzled-Related Protein 1 JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology VOLUME=10 YEAR=2020 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2020.00101 DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2020.00101 ISSN=2235-2988 ABSTRACT=

Schistosomiasis remains a serious parasitic disease, which is characterized by granulomatous inflammation and hepatic fibrosis. MicroRNAs derived from parasites can regulate host genes and cell phenotype. Here, we showed that a miRNA derived from S. japonicum (Sja-miR-1) exists in the hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) of mice infected with the parasite and up-regulates the expression of collagens and α-SMA by targeting secreted frizzled-related protein 1 (SFRP1). A vector-mediated delivery of Sja-miR-1 into naive mice led to hepatic fibrogenesis in the mice. Accordingly, inhibition of Sja-miR-1 in the infected mice led to reduction of the parasite-induced hepatic fibrosis. The mechanism behind the Sja-miR-1-mediated activation of HSC could be through targeting SFRP1 to regulate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. These findings reveal that parasite-derived small non-coding RNAs are implicated in cross-species regulation of host pathological process and persistent inhibition of Sja-miR-1 may provide a therapeutic potential for the parasite diseases.