The importance of [[flow]] [[shear stress]] (SS) on the differentiation of [[endothelial progenitor cell]]s (EPCs) has been demonstrated in various studies. [[Cholesterol]] retention and MicroRNA regulation have been also proposed as relevant factors involved in this process, though [[evidence]] regarding their regulatory roles in the differentiation of EPCs is currently lacking. 

In a study Li et al. on high [[shear stress]] (HSS)-induced differentiation of EPCs, they investigated the importance of [[ABCA1]], an important regulator in cholesterol efflux, and miR-25-5p, a potential regulator of endothelial reconstruction. They first revealed an inverse correlation between miR-25-5p and ABCA1 expression levels in EPCs under HSS treatment; their direct interaction was subsequently validated by a dual luciferase reporter assay. Further studies using [[flow cytometry]] and qPCR demonstrated that both miR-25-5p overexpression and ABCA1 inhibition led to elevated levels of specific markers of [[endothelial cell]]s (ECs), with concomitant down-regulation of [[smooth muscle cell]] (SMC) markers. Finally, knockdown of ABCA1 in EPCs significantly promoted tube formation, which confirmed the conjecture. This current results suggest that miR-25-5p might regulate the differentiation of EPCs partially through targeting ABCA1, and such a mechanism might account for HSS-induced differentiation of EPCs
((Li Z, Li JN, Li Q, Liu C, Zhou LH, Zhang Q, Xu Y. miR-25-5p regulates endothelial progenitor cell differentiation in response to shear stress through targeting ABCA1. Cell Biol Int. 2021 May 4. doi: 10.1002/cbin.11621. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33945659.)).