Role of long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) in multiple sclerosis: a brief review

Involvement of NRON and TUG1 long noncoding RNAs in inflammation and the pathogenesis of EAE

There is growing evidence that the long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) contribute to the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The role of lncRNAs nuclear repressor of NFAT (NRON) and Taurine up-regulated 1 (TUG1) in the inflammatory processes occurring in the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of MS is yet to be investigated. Transcript levels of NRON and TUG1 in acute and chronic phases of EAE and cultured macrophages as well as the correlation between NRON and TUG1 expression with inflammatory cytokines, were evaluated in this study. EAE experimental model was induced in female C57BL/6 mice with subcutaneous injection of MOG35-55/CFA. Mice were scored for 28 days and then sacrificed. The expression of lncRNAs TUG1 and NRON in lumbar spinal cords, activated and controlled macrophages as well as the expression of IL-1, IL-6, and CDe-3 inflammatory cytokines, were assayed by real-time RT-PCR. The lncRNAs TUG1 and NRON were significantly down-regulated in lumbar spinal cords tissues in the acute phase of EAE compared to the control group. TUG1 and NRON were significantly down-regulated in macrophages treated with 10 ng lipopolysaccharide (LPS) compared to the control macrophages. A negative correlation was identified between NRON and TUG1 expression and IL-1, IL-6, and CDe-3 inflammatory cytokines. The present study demonstrates the dysregulation of lncRNAs TUG1 and NRON in spinal cord tissue lesions of EAE and activated macrophages, pointing to their potential role in the pathogenesis of EAE.

LncRNA: a new perspective on the study of neurological diseases

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a class of non-coding RNA with a length greater than 200 nt. It has a mRNA-like structure, formed by splicing after transcription, and contains a polyA tail and a promoter, of whom promoter plays a role by binding transcription factors. LncRNAs' sequences are low in conservation, and other species can only find a handful of the same lncRNAs as humans, and there are different splicing ways during the differentiation of identical species, with spatiotemporal expression specificity. With developing high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics, found that more and more lncRNAs associated with nervous system disease. This article deals with the regulation of certain lncRNAs in the nervous system disease, by mean of to understand its mechanism of action, and the pathogenesis of some neurological diseases have a fresh understanding, deposit a foundation for resulting research and clinical treatment of disease.

Identification of Novel Key Genes and Pathways in Multiple Sclerosis Based on Weighted Gene Coexpression Network Analysis and Long Noncoding RNA-Associated Competing Endogenous RNA Network

Objective

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system characterized by chronic inflammation and demyelination. This study is aimed at identifying crucial genes and molecular pathways involved in MS pathogenesis.

Methods

Raw data in GSE52139 were collected from the Gene Expression Omnibus. The top 50% expression variants were subjected to weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA), and the key module associated with MS occurrence was identified. A long noncoding RNA- (lncRNA-) associated competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network was constructed in the key module. The hub gene candidates were subsequently verified in an individual database.

Results

Of the 18 modules obtained, the cyan module was designated as the key module. The established ceRNA network was composed of seven lncRNAs, 45 mRNAs, and 21 microRNAs (miRNAs), and the FAM13A-AS1 was the lncRNA with the highest centrality. Functional assessments indicated that the genes in the cyan module primarily gathered in ribosome-related functional terms. Interestingly, the targeted mRNAs of the ceRNA network enriched in diverse categories. Moreover, highly expressed CYBRD1, GNG12, and SMAD1, which were identified as hub genes, may be associated with “valine leucine and isoleucine degradation,” “base excision repair,” and “fatty acid metabolism,” respectively, according to the results of single gene-based genomes and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA).

Conclusions

Combined with the WGCNA and ceRNA network, our findings provide novel insights into the pathogenesis of MS. The hub genes discovered herein might also serve as novel biomarkers that correlate with the development and management of MS.

Nucleic Acids as Novel Therapeutic Modalities to Address Multiple Sclerosis Onset and Progression

The issue of treating Multiple Sclerosis (MS) begins with disease-modifying treatments (DMTs) which may cause lymphopenia, dyspnea, and many other adverse effects. Consequently, further identification and evaluation of alternative treatments are crucial to monitoring their long-term outcomes and hopefully, moving toward personalized approaches that can be translated into clinical treatments. In this article, we focused on the novel therapeutic modalities that alter the interaction between the cellular constituents contributing to MS onset and progression. Furthermore, the studies that have been performed to evaluate and optimize drugs' efficacy, and particularly, to show their limitations and strengths are also presented. The preclinical trials of novel approaches for multiple sclerosis treatment provide promising prospects to cure the disease with pinpoint precision. Considering the fact that not a single treatment could be effective enough to cover all aspects of MS treatment, additional researches and therapies need to be developed in the future. Since the pathophysiology of MS resembles a jigsaw puzzle, researchers need to put a host of pieces together to create a promising window towards MS treatment. Thus, a combination therapy encompassing all these modules is highly likely to succeed in dealing with the disease. The use of different therapeutic approaches to re-induce self-tolerance in autoreactive cells contributing to MS pathogenesis is presented. A Combination therapy using these tools may help to deal with the clinical disabilities and symptoms of the disease in the future.

S100 calcium binding protein A6 and associated long noncoding ribonucleic acids as biomarkers in the diagnosis and staging of primary biliary cholangitis

BACKGROUND

Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a chronic and slowly progressing cholestatic disease, which causes damage to the small intrahepatic bile duct by immuno-regulation, and may lead to cholestasis, liver fibrosis, cirrhosis and, eventually, liver failure.

AIM

To explore the potential diagnosis and staging value of plasma S100 calcium binding protein A6 (S100A6) messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), LINC00312, LINC00472, and LINC01257 in primary biliary cholangitis.

METHODS

A total of 145 PBC patients and 110 healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled. Among them, 80 PBC patients and 60 HCs were used as the training set, and 65 PBC patients and 50 HCs were used as the validation set. The relative expression levels of plasma S100A6 mRNA, long noncoding ribonucleic acids LINC00312, LINC00472 and LINC01257 were analyzed using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. The bile duct ligation (BDL) mouse model was used to simulate PBC. Then double immunofluorescence was conducted to verify the overexpression of S100A6 protein in intrahepatic bile duct cells of BDL mice. Human intrahepatic biliary epithelial cells were treated with glycochenodeoxycholate to simulate the cholestatic environment of intrahepatic biliary epithelial cells in PBC.

RESULTS

The expression of S100A6 protein in intrahepatic bile duct cells was up-regulated in the BDL mouse model compared with sham mice. The relative expression levels of plasma S100A6 mRNA, log10 LINC00472 and LINC01257 were up-regulated while LINC00312 was down-regulated in plasma of PBC patients compared with HCs (3.01 ± 1.04 vs 2.09 ± 0.87, P < 0.0001; 2.46 ± 1.03 vs 1.77 ± 0.84, P < 0.0001; 3.49 ± 1.64 vs 2.37 ± 0.96, P < 0.0001; 1.70 ± 0.33 vs 2.07 ± 0.53, P < 0.0001, respectively). The relative expression levels of S100A6 mRNA, LINC00472 and LINC01257 were up-regulated and LINC00312 was down-regulated in human intrahepatic biliary epithelial cells treated with glycochenodeoxycholate compared with control (2.97 ± 0.43 vs 1.09 ± 0.08, P = 0.0018; 2.70 ± 0.26 vs 1.10 ± 0.10, P = 0.0006; 2.23 ± 0.21 vs 1.10 ± 0.10, P = 0.0011; 1.20 ± 0.04 vs 3.03 ± 0.15, P < 0.0001, respectively). The mean expression of S100A6 in the advanced stage (III and IV) of PBC was up-regulated compared to that in HCs and the early stage (II) (3.38 ± 0.71 vs 2.09 ± 0.87, P < 0.0001; 3.38 ± 0.71 vs 2.57 ± 1.21, P = 0.0003, respectively); and in the early stage (II), it was higher than that in HCs (2.57 ± 1.21 vs 2.09 ± 0.87, P = 0.03). The mean expression of LINC00312 in the advanced stage was lower than that in the early stage and HCs (1.39 ± 0.29 vs 1.56 ± 0.33, P = 0.01; 1.39 ± 0.29 vs 2.07 ± 0.53, P < 0.0001, respectively); in addition, the mean expression of LINC00312 in the early stage was lower than that in HCs (1.56 ± 0.33 vs 2.07 ± 0.53, P < 0.0001). The mean expression of log10 LINC00472 in the advanced stage was higher than those in the early stage and HCs (2.99 ± 0.87 vs 1.81 ± 0.83, P < 0.0001; 2.99 ± 0.87 vs 1.77 ± 0.84, P < 0.0001, respectively). The mean expression of LINC01257 in both the early stage and advanced stage were up-regulated compared with HCs (3.88 ± 1.55 vs 2.37 ± 0.96, P < 0.0001; 3.57 ± 1.79 vs 2.37 ± 0.96, P < 0.0001, respectively). The areas under the curves (AUC) for S100A6, LINC00312, log10 LINC00472 and LINC01257 in PBC diagnosis were 0.759, 0.7292, 0.6942 and 0.7158, respectively. Furthermore, the AUC for these four genes in PBC staging were 0.666, 0.661, 0.839 and 0.5549, respectively. The expression levels of S100A6 mRNA, log10 LINC00472, and LINC01257 in plasma of PBC patients were decreased (2.35 ± 1.02 vs 3.06 ± 1.04, P = 0.0018; 1.99 ± 0.83 vs 2.33 ± 0.96, P = 0.036; 2.84 ± 0.92 vs 3.69 ± 1.54, P = 0.0006), and the expression level of LINC00312 was increased (1.95 ± 0.35 vs 1.73 ± 0.32, P = 0.0007) after treatment compared with before treatment using the paired t-test. Relative expression of S100A6 mRNA was positively correlated with log10 LINC00472 (r = 0.683, P < 0.0001); serum level of collagen type IV was positively correlated with the relative expression of log10 LINC00472 (r = 0.482, P < 0.0001); relative expression of S100A6 mRNA was positively correlated with the serum level of collagen type IV (r = 0.732, P < 0.0001). The AUC for the four biomarkers obtained in the validation set were close to the training set.

CONCLUSION

These four genes may potentially act as novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of PBC. Moreover, LINC00472 acts as a potential biomarker for staging in PBC.