Extracellular vesicles derived from hypoxic glioma stem-like cells confer temozolomide resistance on glioblastoma by delivering miR-30b-3p.

Rationale: Glioma stem-like cells (GSCs) contribute to temozolomide (TMZ) resistance in gliomas, although the mechanisms have not been delineated.

Methods

In vitro functional experiments (colony formation assay, flow cytometric analysis, TUNEL assay) were used to assess the ability of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from hypoxic GSCs to promote TMZ resistance in glioblastoma (GBM) cells. RNA sequencing and quantitative Reverse Transcription-PCR were employed to identify the functional miRNA in hypoxic EVs. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays were performed to analyze the transcriptional regulation of miRNAs by HIF1α and STAT3. RIP and RNA pull-down assays were used to validate the hnRNPA2B1-mediated packaging of miRNA into EVs. The function of EV miR-30b-3p from hypoxic GSCs was verified by in vivo experiments and analysis of clinical samples.

Results

Hypoxic GSC-derived EVs exerted a greater effect on GBM chemoresistance than those from normoxic GSCs. The miRNA profiling revealed that miR-30b-3p was significantly upregulated in the EVs from hypoxic GSCs. Further, HIF1α and STAT3 transcriptionally induced miR-30b-3p expression. RNA immunoprecipitation and RNA-pull down assays revealed that binding of miR-30b-3p with hnRNPA2B1 facilitated its transfer into EVs. EV-packaged miR-30b-3p (EV-miR-30b-3p) directly targeted RHOB, resulting in decreased apoptosis and increased proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Our results provided evidence that miR-30b-3p in CSF could be a potential biomarker predicting resistance to TMZ.

Conclusion

Our findings indicated that targeting EV-miR-30b-3p could provide a potential treatment strategy for GBM.