Comprehensive miRNA and DNA Microarray Analyses Reveal the Response of Hepatic miR-203 and Its Target Gene to Protein Malnutrition in Rats

Adequate protein nutrition is essential for good health. Effects of protein malnutrition in animals have been widely studied at the mRNA level with the development of DNA microarray technology. Although microRNAs (miRNAs) have attracted attention for their function in regulating gene expression and have been studied in several disciplines, fewer studies have clarified the effects of protein malnutrition on miRNA alterations. The present study aimed to elucidate the relationship between protein malnutrition and miRNAs. Six-week old Wistar male rats were fed a control diet (20% casein) or a low-protein diet (5% casein) for two weeks, and their livers were subjected to both DNA microarray and miRNA array analysis. miR-203 was downregulated and its putative target (hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase β subunit), known to regulate β-oxidation of fatty acids, was upregulated by the low-protein diet. In an in vitro experiment, miR-203 or its inhibitor were transfected in HepG2 cells, and the pattern of expression was opposite to that of miR-203 expression. In addition, to clarifying the hepatic miRNA profile in response to protein malnutrition, these results showed that a low-protein diet increased expression through downregulation of miR-203 and induced β-oxidation of fatty acids.