Circular RNA hsa_circ_0000848 promotes trophoblast cell migration and invasion and inhibits cell apoptosis by sponging hsa-miR-6768-5p. Circular RNA hsa_circ_0000848 promotes trophoblast cell migration and invasion and inhibits cell apoptosis by sponging hsa-miR-6768-5p

To investigate the expression profiles of circRNAs in the placental tissues from pregnant women with fetal growth restriction (FGR), Arraystar Human circRNA Array V2 analysis was performed. Six samples (three samples each from FGR group and healthy controls group) were used in the microarray screening. 13532 circRNAs were identified in the placental tissues from FGR and normal groups, and only 244 circRNAs were found to be more differentially expressed in the placental tissues of the FGR group than in normal placenta (fold-change > 1.5, p < 0.05). Among them, 100 and 144 circRNAs were up- and down-regulated, respectively. To verify circRNA expression in the FGR placenta, we chose hsa_circ_0007738, hsa_circ_0071271, and hsa_circ_0000848, which have the greatest expression differences between FGR and normal groups, for further analysis. Hsa_circ_0000848 expression level was significantly lower in FGR placental tissues than in the normal placenta tissues, whereas hsa_circ_0007738 and hsa_circ_0071271 expression levels did not change significantly. Further, we found that hsa_circ_0000848 promoted trophoblast cell migration and invasion, and inhibited cell apoptosis via sponging miR-6768-5p. Overall design: Firstly, microarray analysis was performed to investigate the expression profiles of circRNAs in the placental tissues from pregnant women with fetal growth restriction. Furthermore, we investigated the function and regulatory mechanism of hsa_circ_0000848 in HTR-8 cells, a human extravillous trophoblast (EVT) cell line, to study trophoblast functions including cell fusion, migration, and invasion.