circ_0037128/miR-17-3p/AKT3 axis promotes the development of diabetic nephropathy.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play vital roles in the development of diabetic nephropathy (DN). In this study, we investigated the function of circ_0037128 and molecular mechanism via which it regulates diabetic nephropathy development. It was found that expression of circ_0037128 was significantly increased in mouse DN model and high glucose treated mesangial cells (MCs), and circ_0037128 loss-of-function led to reduced cell proliferation and fibrosis in vitro. Moreover, miR-17-3p acts as competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) that directly interacts with circ_0037128 through its miRNA response elements (MREs). Consistently, expression of miR-17-3p was remarkably down-regulated in DN model, and negatively regulated cell proliferation and fibrosis. Further investigations revealed that AKT3 was the putative target of miR-17-3p, whose expression was elevated in DN model. In conclusion, we have characterized the function of a novel circ_0037128 and illustrated the significance of circ_0037128-miR-17-3p-AKT3 axis in DN pathogenesis.