.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
Return
MicroRNAs Regulated by Pregnancy Target Antiviral and Cancer Immunity Overlapping with the HIV Interactome
.png){kind=icon}
OA
AI
P
J
P
H
X
H
C
G
R
R
DOI：10.3390/v18070753.png)
.png){kind=icon}
Original request for help.png){kind=icon}
Share.png){kind=icon}
Save
Abstract
En 中文
Innate immunity predictors of HIV-1 risk and pathogenesis vary with reproductive hormones, pregnancy, and lactation, yet the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We hypothesized that pregnancy-associated physiological adaptations alter systemic microRNA (miRNA) expression, thereby regulating immunity, pathogenesis and susceptibility to infection. We analyzed 174 serum samples from 88 participants in a longitudinal cohort from Uganda and Zimbabwe across pre-pregnancy (PP), pregnancy (P), and postpartum breastfeeding (BF). Cell-free peripheral blood miRNAs (n = 2083) were profiled using HTG EdgeSeq. Pregnancy-specific miRNAs were identified by intersecting differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs from P vs. PP and P vs. BF comparisons. miRNA targets and pathways were analyzed using miRWalk, Cytoscape/ClueGO, and cytoHubba. Pregnancy was associated with DE miRNAs (29 upregulated and 131 downregulated) targeting 2733 validated genes. Enriched pathways (FDR < 0.05) included adaptive immune response, Hippo Signaling, Cellular Senescence, HSV-1 infection, and two cancer-related pathways. Pregnancy-enriched targets within each pathway overlapped with the HIV–host interactome by 37–88%. Network analysis identified 47 hub genes interacting with 18 HIV-1 proteins, with Tat and gp120 being most connected viral and HLA-A being the most connected host protein. These findings indicate that pregnancy-driven systemic miRNAs target the HIV–host interactome and specifically identify pregnancy-enriched central hub genes involved in cell cycle control, viral immune evasion and replication to be further investigated for their predictive value in HIV acquisition and pathogenesis in longitudinal cohorts and experimental settings.
Keywords:
pregnancy
breastfeeding
non-coding RNA
miRNA
viral infections
cancer cell cycle
Journal
IF:
3.5
Papers:
1.7W
Citations:
4.9W
Organization
Cited Papers