Figure 3. Functional effects of ectopically expressed miR-146a on oxidative phosphorylation in rat primary mixed glial cells.

Mixed primary glial cells were transfected with a miR-146a overexpression vector for 40 hours, and mitochondrial function was assessed. ATP production (A) was significantly reduced in a miR-146a dose-dependent fashion (t₇₁ = −10.95, p ≤ 0.0001, R² = 0.62). Spare respiratory capacity (B) was significantly reduced in a dose-dependent fashion (t₇₂ = −10.98, p ≤ 0.0001, R² = 0.62). Maximal respiration (C) was significantly reduced in a dose-dependent fashion (t₇₂ = −14.13, p ≤ 0.0001, R² = 0.73). Proton leak (D) was significantly reduced in a dose-dependent fashion (t₇₀ = −8.81, p ≤ 0.0001, R² = 0.52). Data were analyzed by using simple linear regression which showed a negative linear trend between the independent variable (miR-146a) and each dependent variable. All data are presented as means ± SEM.