microRNA-96 protects pancreatic β-cell function by targeting PAK1 in gestational diabetes mellitus

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a disease condition in which a woman develops high blood sugar levels during pregnancy, which might be induced by multiple factors. Among those relative factors, microRNA (miRNA) is well-known to be involved in GDM development. In this study, we investigated the role of miRNA in GDM by analyzing miRNA expression profiling in placenta tissues from healthy or GDM pregnancies. We found that miR-96 was the most down-regulated miRNA in GDM samples. Furthermore, miRNA target gene prediction revealed that p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1) is a potential target of miR-96. Functional assays showed that miR-96 enhanced β-cell function, whereas PAK1 inhibited β-cell function and cell viability. Our findings demonstrate that miR-96 plays a critical role in GDM development by regulating PAK1 expression, insulin secretion, and β-cell function. © 2018 BioFactors, 44(6):539-547, 2018.