{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]],"date-time":"2025-12-01T08:30:32Z","timestamp":1764577832252,"version":"3.46.0"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"Cell Physiol Biochem Press GmbH and Co KG","issue":"6","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Cell Physiol Biochem"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Aims: Emerging evidence suggests that circular RNAs (circRNAs) play a crucial role in kidney disease regulation. However, their functional significance in chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains poorly understood. Methods: In this study, circRNAs were identified by RNA sequencing in two CKD mouse models, including unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) and anti-glomerular basement membrane (anti-GBM) glomerulonephritis. RNase-R treatment and Sanger sequencing were used to confirm circular structure. Circ-RNF216-shRNA was used to establish stable KD mTEC cell lines. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to detect circ-RNF216 expression. In situ hybridization was used to find the expression and localization of circ-RNF216 in kidney. Transwell assay was performed to assess cell migration. RNA sequencing was performed to characterize the mRNA expression profiles and identify the pathways affected by circ-RNF216 knockdown in mTECs. Results: We identified 1589 circRNAs in 2 CKD mouse models. Circ-RNF216 expression was up-regulated in UUO models. Functional analyses revealed that circ-RNF216 regulates renal fibrosis through modulation of the TGF-\u03b21\/Smad3 pathway. Knocking down circ-RNF216 in mouse tubular epithelial cells led to significant suppression of migratory capacity and fibrosis. RNA sequencing showed that circ-RNF216 knockdown altered mRNA expression, with differential genes mainly enriched in the transforming growth factor-\u03b2 receptor superfamily signaling pathway. Conclusion: Our findings highlight circ-RNF216 as a novel regulatory factor in CKD-related renal fibrosis, thus broadening our understanding of circRNA involvement in kidney disease pathogenesis. These results suggest that circ-RNF216 may serve as a promising target for therapeutic strategies aimed at preserving renal function.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.33594\/000000833","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]],"date-time":"2025-12-01T08:27:58Z","timestamp":1764577678000},"page":"867-883","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Identifying Circ-RNF216 as a Regulator of Renal Tubular Epithelial Cell Proliferation Via the TGF-\u03921\/Smad3-Mediated Pathway in Chronic Kidney Disease"],"prefix":"10.33594","volume":"59","author":[{"name":"Department of Nephrology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Minghui","family":"Xu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yue","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"name":"NHC Key Laboratory of Clinical Nephrology and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Nephrology, Guangzhou, China","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Puhua","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"name":"Precision Medicine Research Center, Affiliated Hospital of Jiujiang University, No. 57 Xunyang Road, Jiujiang 332000, Jiangxi Province, China","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chunxia","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Qin","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ning","family":"Luo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"19235","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,30]]},"container-title":["Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry"],"original-title":[],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,1]],"date-time":"2025-12-01T08:27:58Z","timestamp":1764577678000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/cellphysiolbiochem.com\/Articles\/000833\/index.html"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,30]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"6","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,30]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.33594\/000000833","relation":{},"ISSN":["1015-8987","1421-9778"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1015-8987","type":"print"},{"value":"1421-9778","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,30]]}}}