miRNAs mediate the impact of smoking on dental pulp stem cells via the p53 pathway

Cigarette smoke changes the genomic and epigenomic imprint of cells. In this study, we investigated the biological consequences of extended cigarette smoke exposure on dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) and the potential roles of miRNAs. DPSCs were treated with various doses of cigarette smoke condensate (CSC) for up to 6 weeks. Cell proliferation, survival, migration, and differentiation were evaluated. Cytokine and miRNA expression were profiled. The results showed that extended exposure to CSC significantly impaired the regenerative capacity of the DPSCs. Bioinformatic analysis showed that the cell cycle pathway, cancer pathways (small cell lung cancer, pancreatic, colorectal, and prostate cancer), and pathways for TNF, TGF-β, p53, PI3K-Akt, mTOR, and ErbB signal transduction, were associated with altered miRNA profiles. In particular, 3 miRNAs has-miR-26a-5p, has-miR-26b-5p, and has-miR-29b-3p fine-tune the p53 and cell cycle signaling pathways to regulate DPSC cellular activities. The work indicated that miRNAs are promising targets to modulate stem cell regeneration and understanding miRNA-targeted genes and their associated pathways in smoking individuals have significant implications for disease control and prevention.