Daphnetin alleviates unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion by regulating the NR4A1/BACH2 axis in mice
摘要
Daphnetin has demonstrated various pharmacological activities. The current study evaluated the potential of daphnetin in alleviating unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (URSA) and explored underlying mechanisms.
MethodsMice with URSA were gavaged with 1 mg/kg, 10 mg/kg, and 20 mg/kg of daphnetin, or infected with adeno-associated viruses harboring knockdown of NR4A1 or overexpression of BACH2 before modeling. Human peripheral blood T lymphocytes were induced into CD4+ T cells, followed by lentivirus infection and daphnetin treatment. The influence of daphnetin on CD4+ T cell viability and Treg and Th17 cell differentiation in cells was analyzed. The concentrations of Treg cells-associated cytokines (TGF-β, IL-10) and Th17 cells-associated cytokines (IL-17, IL-23) in the supernatants of CD4+ T cells were assessed. The regulation of NR4A1 on BACH2 was analyzed by ChIP and dual-luciferase assays.
ResultsDaphnetin resulted in fewer immature, resorbed, or dead embryos in mice with URSA, with the most pronounced therapeutic effect of 10 mg/kg. Daphnetin attenuated decidual hemorrhage, with a gain in the percentage/number of Treg cells and a loss of the percentage/number of Th17 cells in the spleen and decidual tissues. Daphnetin enhanced the expression of FoxP3, TGF-β, and IL-10, and suppressed the expression of RORγt, IL-17, IL-23, and the contents of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β in CD4+ T cells. Overexpression of BACH2 further alleviated URSA deterioration caused by NR4A1 knockdown. Daphnetin mediated the transcriptional activation of BACH2 by upregulating NR4A1.
ConclusionsUpregulation of NR4A1 by daphnetin mediates BACH2 transcription and Th17/Treg cell homeostasis to improve URSA.