Cytokines and Long Noncoding RNAs

linc-ADAIN, a human adipose lincRNA, regulates adipogenesis by modulating KLF5 and IL-8 mRNA stability

Adipose tissue remodeling and dysfunction, characterized by elevated inflammation and insulin resistance, play a central role in obesity-related development of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cardiovascular diseases. Long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) are important regulators of cellular functions. Here, we describe the functions of linc-ADAIN (adipose anti-inflammatory), an adipose lincRNA that is downregulated in white adipose tissue of obese humans. We demonstrate that linc-ADAIN knockdown (KD) increases KLF5 and interleukin-8 (IL-8) mRNA stability and translation by interacting with IGF2BP2. Upregulation of KLF5 and IL-8, via linc-ADAIN KD, leads to an enhanced adipogenic program and adipose tissue inflammation, mirroring the obese state, in vitro and in vivo. KD of linc-ADAIN in human adipose stromal cell (ASC) hTERT adipocytes implanted into mice increases adipocyte size and macrophage infiltration compared to implanted control adipocytes, mimicking hallmark features of obesity-induced adipose tissue remodeling. linc-ADAIN is an anti-inflammatory lincRNA that limits adipose tissue expansion and lipid storage.

Exploring the detailed role of interleukins in cancer: A comprehensive review of literature

The cancer cells that are not normal can grow into tumors, invade surrounding tissues, and travel to other parts of the body via the lymphatic or circulatory systems. Interleukins, a vital class of signaling proteins, facilitate cell-to-cell contact within the immune system. A type of non-coding RNA known as lncRNAs mediates its actions by regulating miRNA-mRNA roles (Interleukins). Because of their dual function in controlling the growth of tumors and altering the immune system's response to cancer cells, interleukins have been extensively studied concerning cancer. Understanding the complex relationships between interleukins, the immune system, the tumor microenvironment, and the components of interleukin signaling pathways that impact the miRNA-mRNA axis, including lncRNAs, has advanced significantly in cancer research. Due to the significant and all-encompassing influence of interleukins on the immune system and the development and advancement of cancers, lncRNAs play a crucial role in cancer research by modulating interleukins. Their diverse effects on immune system regulation, tumor growth encouragement, and tumor inhibition make them appealing candidates for potential cancer treatments and diagnostics. A deeper understanding of the relationship between the biology of interleukin and lncRNAs will likely result in more effective immunotherapy strategies and individualized cancer treatments.

Expression profile of long-noncoding RNAs MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER in systemic lupus erythematosus patients

OBJECTIVES

Growing evidence suggests that systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), an organ-damaging systemic autoimmune illness, may be influenced by long-noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). This study aimed to assess the relative expression of lncRNAs (MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER) in patients with SLE to evaluate their role in the disease.

DESIGN AND METHODS

This study involved 70 patients with SLE and 70 apparently healthy control subjects. The expression levels of lnc-MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER were quantified using real-time PCR.

RESULTS

Lnc-MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER were significantly upregulated in SLE cases compared to controls (P < 0.001). ROC curve analysis revealed a 91.43 % sensitivity of PACER for the diagnosis of SLE at a cutoff point of > 1.46, followed by NKILA with 90 % sensitivity at a cutoff point of > 1.16, and MIR31HG with 85.71 % sensitivity at a cutoff point of > 1.43. MIR31HG had the highest sensitivity for the diagnosis of lupus nephritis (86.67 %) at a cutoff point of > 7.19, then NKILA with 80 % sensitivity at a cutoff point of > 8.12, and finally PACER expression with 73.33 % sensitivity at a cutoff point of > 18.19. Moreover, MIR31HG and NKILA revealed a significant correlation with albumin/creatinine ratio, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and the SLEDAI score. Regression analysis revealed the potential roles of MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER expression as predictors for SLE.

CONCLUSION

An upregulated lncRNA panel (MIR31HG, NKILA, and PACER) could play a role in the pathogenesis and, hence, the predispositiontoSLE. MIR31HG and NKILA can serve as prognostic markers significantly linked with disease activity.

Regulatory RNAs in immunosenescence

BACKGROUND

Immunosenescence is a multifactorial stress response to different intrinsic and extrinsic insults that cause immune deterioration and is accompanied by genomic or epigenomic perturbations. It is now widely recognized that genes and proteins contributing in the process of immunosenescence are regulated by various noncoding (nc) RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs), long ncRNAs, and circular RNAs.

AIMS

This review article aimed to evaluate the regulatore RNAs roles in the process of immunosenescence.

METHODS

We analyzed publications that were focusing on the different roles of regulatory RNAs on the several aspects of immunosenescence.

RESULTS

In the immunosenescence setting, ncRNAs have been found to play regulatory roles at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. These factors cooperate to regulate the initiation of gene expression programs and sustaining the senescence phenotype and proinflammatory responses.

CONCLUSION

Immunosenescence is a complex process with pivotal alterations in immune function occurring with age. The extensive network that drive immunosenescence-related features are are mainly directed by a variety of regulatory RNAs such as miRNAs, lncRNAs, and circRNAs. Latest findings about regulation of senescence by ncRNAs in the innate and adaptive immune cells as well as their role in the immunosenescence pathways, provide a better understanding of regulatory RNAs function in the process of immunosenescence.

The role of lncRNAs and exosomal lncRNAs in cancer metastasis

Tumor metastasis is the main reason for cancer-related death, but there is still a lack of effective therapeutic to inhibit tumor metastasis. Therefore, the discovery and study of new tumor metastasis regulators is a prominent measure for cancer diagnosis and treatment. Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) is a type of non-coding RNAs over 200 bp in length. It has been shown that the abnormally expressed lncRNAs promote tumor metastasis by participating in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process, altering the metastatic tumor microenvironment, or changing the extracellular matrix. It is,thus, critical to explore the regulation of lncRNAs expression in cells and the molecular mechanism of lncRNA-mediated cancer metastasis. Simultaneously, it has been shown that lncRNA is one kind of the main components of exosomes, which protects lncRNAs from being rapidly degraded. Meanwhile, the components of exosomes are parent-specific, making exosomal lncRNAs to be potential tumor metastasis markers and therapeutic targets. In view of this, we also summarized the aberrant enrichment of lncRNAs in exosomes and their role in metastatic cancer. The aberrant lncRNAs and exosomal lncRNAs gradually become biomarkers and therapeutic targets for tumor metastatic, and the potential of lncRNAs in therapeutics are studied here. Besides, the lncRNA-related databases, which could greatly facilitate in the study of lncRNAs and exosomal lncRNAs in metastatic of cancer are included in this review.

Recent progress in the immunotherapy of hepatocellular carcinoma: Non-coding RNA-based immunotherapy may improve the outcome

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second most lethal cancer and a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) significantly improved the prognosis of HCC; however, the therapeutic response remains unsatisfactory in a substantial proportion of patients or needs to be further improved in responders. Herein, other methods of immunotherapy, including vaccine-based immunotherapy, adoptive cell therapy, cytokine delivery, kynurenine pathway inhibition, and gene delivery, have been adopted in clinical trials. Although the results were not encouraging enough to expedite their marketing. A major proportion of human genome is transcribed into non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). Preclinical studies have extensively investigated the roles of ncRNAs in different aspects of HCC biology. HCC cells reprogram the expression pattern of numerous ncRNAs to decrease the immunogenicity of HCC, exhaust the cytotoxic and anti-cancer function of CD8 + T cells, natural killer (NK) cells, dendritic cells (DCs), and M1 macrophages, and promote the immunosuppressive function of T Reg cells, M2 macrophages, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). Mechanistically, cancer cells recruit ncRNAs to interact with immune cells, thereby regulating the expression of immune checkpoints, functional receptors of immune cells, cytotoxic enzymes, and inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Interestingly, prediction models based on the tissue expression or even serum levels of ncRNAs could predict response to immunotherapy in HCC. Moreover, ncRNAs markedly potentiated the efficacy of ICIs in murine models of HCC. This review article first discusses recent advances in the immunotherapy of HCC, then dissects the involvement and potential application of ncRNAs in the immunotherapy of HCC.

Non-coding RNAs in immunoregulation and autoimmunity: Technological advances and critical limitations

Immune cell function is critically dependent on precise control over transcriptional output from the genome. In this respect, integration of environmental signals that regulate gene expression, specifically by transcription factors, enhancer DNA elements, genome topography and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), are key components. The first three have been extensively investigated. Even though non-coding RNAs represent the vast majority of cellular RNA species, this class of RNA remains historically understudied. This is partly because of a lag in technological and bioinformatic innovations specifically capable of identifying and accurately measuring their expression. Nevertheless, recent progress in this domain has enabled a profusion of publications identifying novel sub-types of ncRNAs and studies directly addressing the function of ncRNAs in human health and disease. Many ncRNAs, including circular and enhancer RNAs, have now been demonstrated to play key functions in the regulation of immune cells and to show associations with immune-mediated diseases. Some ncRNAs may function as biomarkers of disease, aiding in diagnostics and in estimating response to treatment, while others may play a direct role in the pathogenesis of disease. Importantly, some are relatively stable and are amenable to therapeutic targeting, for example through gene therapy. Here, we provide an overview of ncRNAs and review technological advances that enable their study and hold substantial promise for the future. We provide context-specific examples by examining the associations of ncRNAs with four prototypical human autoimmune diseases, specifically rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease and multiple sclerosis. We anticipate that the utility and mechanistic roles of these ncRNAs in autoimmunity will be further elucidated in the near future.

A Cuproptosis-Related lncRNAs Signature Could Accurately Predict Prognosis in Patients with Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

Background

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most common subtype of kidney cancers. As cuproptosis, a new cell death mechanism proposed recently, differs from all other known mechanisms regulating cell death, we aimed to create prognostic markers using cuproptosis-related long non-coding ribonucleic acids (RNAs; lncRNAs) and elucidate the molecular mechanism.

Methods

Data from transcriptome RNA sequencing of ccRCC samples and the relevant clinical data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas, and Pearson's correlation analysis was implemented to obtain the cuproptosis-related lncRNAs. Then, univariate Cox, multivariate Cox, and Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator Cox analyses were performed to construct the risk signatures. The cuproptosis-related lncRNAs predictive signature was evaluated with receiver operating characteristic curves and subgroup analysis. Finally, Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA), single-sample GSEA (ssGSEA), tumor immune microenvironment (TIME), and immune checkpoints were performed to explore the relationship between immunity and patient prognosis.

Results

Five cuproptosis-related lncRNAs, including FOXD2-AS1, LINC00460, AC091212.1, AC007365.1, and AC026401.3, were used to construct the signature. In the training and test sets, low-risk groups (as identified by a risk score lower than the median) demonstrated a better prognosis with an area under the curve for 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival being 0.793, 0.716, and 0.719, respectively. GSEA analysis suggested significant enrichment of the tricarboxylic acid cycle and metabolism-related pathways in the low-risk group. Besides, both ssGSEA and TIME suggested that the high-risk group exhibited more active immune infiltration.

Conclusion

We proposed a cuproptosis-related lncRNAs signature, which had the potential for prognoses and prediction. Our findings might contribute to elucidating potential genomic biomarkers and targets for future therapies in the cuproptosis-related signaling pathways.

Cellular resistance to an oncolytic virus is driven by chronic activation of innate immunity

The emergence of cellular resistances to oncolytic viruses is an underexplored process that could compromise the efficacy of cancer virotherapy. Here, we isolated and characterized B16 mouse melanoma cells that evolved resistance to an oncolytic vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV-D51). RNA-seq revealed that resistance was associated to broad changes in gene expression, which typically involved chronic upregulation of interferon-stimulated genes. Innate immunity activation was maintained in the absence of the virus or other infection signals, and conferred cross-resistance to wild-type VSV and the unrelated Sindbis virus. Furthermore, we identified differentially expressed genes with no obvious role in antiviral immunity, such as Mnda, Psmb8 and Btn2a2, suggesting novel functions for these genes. Transcriptomic changes associated to VSV resistance were similar among B16 clones and in some clones derived from the mouse colon carcinoma cell line CT26, suggesting that oncolytic virus resistance involves certain conserved mechanisms and is therefore a potentially predictable process.

The lncRNA ALPHA specifically targets chikungunya virus to control infection

Arthropod-borne viruses, including the alphavirus chikungunya virus (CHIKV), cause acute disease in millions of people and utilize potent mechanisms to antagonize and circumvent innate immune pathways including the type I interferon (IFN) pathway. In response, hosts have evolved antiviral counterdefense strategies that remain incompletely understood. Recent studies have found that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate classical innate immune pathways; how lncRNAs contribute to additional antiviral counterdefenses remains unclear. Using high-throughput genetic screening, we identified a cytoplasmic antiviral lncRNA that we named antiviral lncRNA prohibiting human alphaviruses (ALPHA), which is transcriptionally induced by alphaviruses and functions independently of IFN to inhibit the replication of CHIKV and its closest relative, O'nyong'nyong virus (ONNV), but not other viruses. Furthermore, we showed that ALPHA interacts with CHIKV genomic RNA and restrains viral RNA replication. Together, our findings reveal that ALPHA and potentially other lncRNAs can mediate non-canonical antiviral immune responses against specific viruses.

Prognostic N6-methyladenosine (m6A)-related lncRNA patterns to aid therapy in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Background: Mounting research studies have suggested the indispensable roles of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA modification in carcinogenesis. Nevertheless, it was little known about the potential function of m6A-related lncRNAs in sample clustering, underlying mechanism, and anticancer immunity of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

Methods: PDAC sample data were obtained from TCGA-PAAD project, and a total of 23 m6A regulators were employed based on published articles. Pearson correlation and univariate Cox regression were analyzed to determine m6A-related lncRNAs with prognostic significance to identify distinct m6A-related lncRNA subtypes by consensus clustering. Next, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) algorithm was applied for constructing an m6A-related lncRNA scoring system, further quantifying the m6A-related lncRNA patterns in individual samples. Gene set variation analysis (GSVA) was employed to assign pathway activity estimates to individual samples. To decode the comprehensive landscape of TME, the CIBERSORT method and ESTIMATE algorithm were analyzed. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of chemotherapeutic agents was predicted with the R package pRRophetic. Finally, a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to determine TRPC7-AS1 mRNA expression in PDAC.

Results: Two distinct m6A-related lncRNA patterns with different clinical outcomes, TEM features, and biological enrichment were identified based on 45 prognostic m6A-related lncRNAs. The identification of m6A-related lncRNA patterns within individual samples based on risk scores contributed to revealing biological signatures, clinical outcomes, TEM characterization, and chemotherapeutic effects. A prognostic risk-clinical nomogram was constructed and confirmed to estimate m6A-related lncRNA patterns in individual samples. Finally, the biological roles of TRPC7-AS1 were revealed in PDAC.

Conclusion: This work comprehensively elucidated that m6A-related lncRNA patterns served as an indispensable player in prognostic prediction and TEM features. Quantitative identification of m6A-related lncRNA patterns in individual tumors will contribute to sample stratification for further optimizing therapeutic strategies.

The potential role of serum expression profile of long non coding RNAs, Cox2 and HOTAIR as novel diagnostic biomarkers in systemic lupus erythematosus

Background

The role of the long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is mostly unknown, despite increasing evidence that lncRNAs extensively participate in physiological and pathological conditions.

Aim

To detect the level of lncRNA-Cox2, HOTAIR, IL-6, and MMP-9 in the serum of SLE patients and to correlate these levels with disease activity and patients’ clinical and laboratory data to evaluate the value of these biomarkers for SLE diagnosis and assessment of disease activity.

Methods

Blood samples from 58 SLE patients, and 60 healthy controls (HCs) were used for detection of lncRNAs-Cox2 and HOTAIR expression levels by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Both IL-6 and MMP-9 serum levels were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Lupus activity was assessed with the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI).

Results

The serum expression levels of lncRNA-Cox2 and HOTAIR were significantly up-regulated in SLE patients vs HCs (fold change [median (IQR) was 1.29(0.81–1.71, P<0.0001) and 2.68(0.95–3.67), P = 0.038) for lncRNA-Cox2 and HOTAIR, respectively. Serum levels of both IL-6 and MMP-9 were significantly high in SLE patients compared with HCs (P≤0.001 for each). The up-regulated lncRNA-Cox2 was positively associated with the presence of neurological manifestations in SLE patients (P = 0.007). Furthermore, HOTAIR expression level had significantly positive correlation with IL-6 (r = 0.578, P<0.0001), MMP-9 level (r = 0.762, P<0.0001), nephritis grades (r = 0.296, P = 0.024) and proteinuria (r = 0.287, P = 0.035). LncRNA-Cox2 showed sensitivity and specificity 72.4%, and 100.0% respectively. HOTAIR sensitivity was 60.3%, and specificity was 100.0%. By multiple logistic regression analysis, lncRNA-Cox2 and HOTAIR were found as SLE independent predictors.

Conclusion

LncRNA-COX2 and HOTAIR can be used as new non-invasive biomarkers for the diagnosis of SLE.

Assessing the suitability of long non-coding RNAs as therapeutic targets and biomarkers in SARS-CoV-2 infection

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are RNA transcripts that are over 200 nucleotides and rarely encode proteins or peptides. They regulate gene expression and protein activities and are heavily involved in many cellular processes such as cytokine secretion in respond to viral infection. In severe COVID-19 cases, hyperactivation of the immune system may cause an abnormally sharp increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines, known as cytokine release syndrome (CRS), which leads to severe tissue damage or even organ failure, raising COVID-19 mortality rate. In this review, we assessed the correlation between lncRNAs expression and cytokine release syndrome by comparing lncRNA profiles between COVID-19 patients and health controls, as well as between severe and non-severe cases. We also discussed the role of lncRNAs in CRS contributors and showed that the lncRNA profiles display consistency with patients’ clinic symptoms, thus suggesting the potential of lncRNAs as drug targets or biomarkers in COVID-19 treatment.

Establishment of a lncRNA-Based Prognostic Gene Signature Associated With Altered Immune Responses in HCC

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignancy with higher mortality, and means are urgently needed to improve the prognosis. T cell exclusion (TCE) plays a pivotal role in immune evasion, and lncRNAs represent a large group of tumor development and progression modulators. Using the TCGA HCC dataset (n=374), we identified 2752 differentially expressed and 702 TCE-associated lncRNAs, of which 336 were in both groups. As identified using the univariate Cox regression analysis, those associated with overall survival (OS) were subjected to the LASSO-COX regression analysis to develop a prognosis signature. The model, which consisted of 11 lncRNAs and was named 11LNCPS for 11-lncRNA prognosis signature, was validated and performed better than two previous models. In addition to OS and TCE, higher 11LNCPS scores had a significant correlation with reduced infiltrations of CD8+ T cells and dendritic cells (DCs) and decreased infiltrations of Th1, Th2, and pro B cells. As expected, these infiltration alterations were significantly associated with worse OS in HCC. Analysis of published data indicates that HCCs with higher 11LNCPS scores were transcriptomically similar to those that responded better to PDL1 inhibitor. Of the 11LNCPS lncRNAs, LINC01134 and AC116025.2 seem more crucial, as their upregulations affected more immune cell types' infiltrations and were significantly associated with TCE, worse OS, and compromised immune responses in HCC. LncRNAs in the 11LNCPS impacted many cancer-associated biological processes and signaling pathways, particularly those involved in immune function and metabolism. The 11LNCPS should be useful for predicting prognosis and immune responses in HCC.

Progress in Expression Pattern and Molecular Regulation Mechanism of LncRNA in Bovine Mastitis

Simple Summary

Bovine mastitis is an inflammatory disease of the mammary glands that causes serious harm to cow health and huge economic losses. Susceptibility or resistance to mastitis in individual cows is mainly determined by genetic factors, including coding genes and non-coding genes. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are non-coding RNA molecules with a length of more than 200 nucleotides (nt) that have recently been discovered. They can regulate a variety of diseases of humans and animals, especially the immune response and inflammatory disease process. This paper reviews the role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in inflammatory diseases, emphasizes on the latest research progress of lncRNA expression and the molecular regulatory mechanism in bovine mastitis, and looks forward to the research and application prospect of lncRNA in bovine mastitis, intending to provide a reference for scientific researchers to systematically understand this research field.

Abstract

Bovine mastitis is an inflammatory disease caused by pathogenic microbial infection, trauma, or other factors. Its morbidity is high, and it is difficult to cure, causing great harm to the health of cows and the safety of dairy products. Susceptibility or resistance to mastitis in individual cows is mainly determined by genetic factors, including coding genes and non-coding genes. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a class of endogenous non-coding RNA molecules with a length of more than 200 nucleotides (nt) that have recently been discovered. They can regulate the immune response of humans and animals on three levels (transcription, epigenetic modification, and post-transcription), and are widely involved in the pathological process of inflammatory diseases. Over the past few years, extensive findings revealed basic roles of lncRNAs in inflammation, especially bovine mastitis. This paper reviews the expression pattern and mechanism of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in inflammatory diseases, emphasizes on the latest research progress of the lncRNA expression pattern and molecular regulatory mechanism in bovine mastitis, analyzes the molecular regulatory network of differentially expressed lncRNAs, and looks forward to the research and application prospect of lncRNA in bovine mastitis, laying a foundation for molecular breeding and the biological therapy of bovine mastitis.

Identification of a pyroptosis-related lncRNA risk model for predicting prognosis and immune response in colon adenocarcinoma

Background

Colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) is one of the most common malignant tumors and is diagnosed at an advanced stage with a poor prognosis worldwide. Pyroptosis is involved in the initiation and progression of tumors. This research focused on constructing a pyroptosis-related ceRNA network to generate a reliable risk model for risk prediction and immune infiltration analysis of COAD.

Methods

Transcriptome data, miRNA-sequencing data, and clinical information were downloaded from the TCGA database. First, differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs), miRNAs (DEmiRNAs), and lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) were identified to construct a pyroptosis-related ceRNA network. Second, a pyroptosis-related lncRNA risk model was developed applying univariate Cox regression analysis and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator method (LASSO) regression analysis. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analyses were utilized to functionally annotate RNAs contained in the ceRNA network. In addition, Kaplan-Meier analysis, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, univariate and multivariate Cox regression, and nomogram were applied to validate this risk model. Finally, the relationship of this risk model with immune cells and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB)-related genes was analyzed.

Results

A total of 5373 DEmRNAs, 1159 DElncRNAs, and 355 DEmiRNAs were identified. A pyroptosis-related ceRNA regulatory network containing 132 lncRNAs, 7 miRNAs, and 5 mRNAs was constructed, and a ceRNA-based pyroptosis-related risk model including 11 lncRNAs was built. The tumor tissues were classified into high- and low-risk groups according to the median risk score. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the high-risk group had a shorter survival time; ROC analysis, independent prognostic analysis, and nomogram further indicated the risk model was a significant independent prognostic factor what had an excellent ability to predict patients’ risk. Moreover, immune infiltration analysis indicated that the risk model was related to immune infiltration cells (i.e., B cell naïve, T cell follicular helper, macrophage M1) and ICB-related genes (i.e., PD-1, CTLA4, HAVCR2).

Conclusions

This pyroptosis-related lncRNA risk model possessed good prognostic value, and the ability to predict the outcome of ICB immunotherapy in COAD.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12957-022-02572-8.

The Role of Long Non-Coding RNAs in the Tumor Immune Microenvironment

Tumorigenesis is a complicated process caused by successive genetic and epigenetic alterations. The past decades demonstrated that the immune system affects tumorigenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis. Although increasing immunotherapies are revealed, only a tiny proportion of them are effective. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a class of single-stranded RNA molecules larger than 200 nucleotides and are essential in the molecular network of oncology and immunology. Increasing researches have focused on the connection between lncRNAs and cancer immunotherapy. However, the in-depth mechanisms are still elusive. In this review, we outline the latest studies on the functions of lncRNAs in the tumor immune microenvironment. Via participating in various biological processes such as neutrophil recruitment, macrophage polarization, NK cells cytotoxicity, and T cells functions, lncRNAs regulate tumorigenesis, tumor invasion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and angiogenesis. In addition, we reviewed the current understanding of the relevant strategies for targeting lncRNAs. LncRNAs-based therapeutics may represent promising approaches in serving as prognostic biomarkers or potential therapeutic targets in cancer, providing ideas for future research and clinical application on cancer diagnosis and therapies.

The Interleukin-1 (IL-1) Superfamily Cytokines and Their Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs)

Interleukins (ILs)—which are important members of cytokines—consist of a vast group of molecules, including a wide range of immune mediators that contribute to the immunological responses of many cells and tissues. ILs are immune-glycoproteins, which directly contribute to the growth, activation, adhesion, differentiation, migration, proliferation, and maturation of immune cells; and subsequently, they are involved in the pro and anti-inflammatory responses of the body, by their interaction with a wide range of receptors. Due to the importance of immune system in different organisms, the genes belonging to immune elements, such as ILs, have been studied vigorously. The results of recent investigations showed that the genes pertaining to the immune system undergo progressive evolution with a constant rate. The occurrence of any mutation or polymorphism in IL genes may result in substantial changes in their biology and function and may be associated with a wide range of diseases and disorders. Among these abnormalities, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can represent as important disruptive factors. The present review aims at concisely summarizing the current knowledge available on the occurrence, properties, role, and biological consequences of SNPs within the IL-1 family members.

Immune-related lincRNA pairs predict prognosis and therapeutic response in hepatocellular carcinoma

Growing evidence has demonstrated the functional relevance of long intergenic noncoding RNAs (lincRNAs) to tumorigenesis and immune response. However, immune-related lincRNAs and their value in predicting the clinical outcomes of patients with liver cancer remain largely unexplored. Herein, we utilized the strategy of iterative gene pairing to construct a tumor-specific immune-related lincRNA pairs signature (IRLPS), which did not require specific expression levels, as an indicator of patient outcomes. The 18-IRLPS we developed was associated with overall survival, tumor progression, and recurrence in liver cancer patients. Multivariate analysis revealed that the risk model was an independent predictive factor. A high IRLPS risk was correlated suppressive immune microenvironment, and IRLPS-high patients might benefit more from CD276 blockade or TMIGD2 agonist. Patients in the high-risk group were associated with elevated tumor mutation, increased sensitivity to dopamine receptor antagonists, cisplatin, doxorubicin, and mitomycin but more resistance to vinblastine. Mechanistically, IRLPS high scores might lead to poor prognosis by promoting cell proliferation and metabolic reprogramming. The prognostic significance of the 18-IRLPS was confirmed in independent cancer datasets. These findings highlighted the robust predictive performances of the 18-IRLPS for prognosis and personalized treatment.

Non-Coding RNAs: New Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets for Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is the most common form of focal epilepsy; it is considered a network disorder associated with structural changes. Incomplete knowledge of the pathological changes in TLE complicates a therapeutic approach; indeed, 30 to 50% of patients with TLE are refractory to drug treatment. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), acting as epigenetic factors, participate in the regulation of the pathophysiological processes of epilepsy and are dysregulated during epileptogenesis. Abnormal expression of ncRNA is observed in patients with epilepsy and in animal models of epilepsy. Furthermore, ncRNAs could also be used as biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of treatment response in epilepsy. In summary, ncRNAs can represent important mechanisms and targets for the modulation of brain excitability and can provide information on pathomechanisms, biomarkers and novel therapies for epilepsy. In this review, we summarize the latest research advances concerning mainly molecular mechanisms, regulated by ncRNA, such as synaptic plasticity, inflammation and apoptosis, already associated with the pathogenesis of TLE. Moreover, we discuss the role of ncRNAs, such as microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs and circular RNAs, in the pathophysiology of epilepsy, highlighting their use as potential biomarkers for future therapeutic approaches.

Long noncoding RNA#45 exerts broad inhibitory effect on influenza a virus replication via its stem ring arms

A growing body of evidence suggests the pivotal role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in influenza virus infection. Based on next-generation sequencing, we previously demonstrated that Lnc45 was distinctively stimulated by H5N1 influenza virus in mice. In this study, we systematically investigated the specific role of Lnc45 during influenza A virus (IAV) infection. Through qRT-PCR, we first demonstrated that Lnc45 is highly up-regulated by different subtypes of IAV strains, including H5N1, H7N9, and H1N1 viruses. Using RNA-FISH and qRT-PCR, we then found that Lnc45 can translocate from nuclear to cytoplasm during H5N1 virus infection. In addition, forced Lnc45 expression dramatically impeded viral replication of H1N1, H5N1, and H7N9 virus, while abolish of Lnc45 expression by RNA interference favored replication of these viruses, highlighting the potential broad antiviral activity of Lnc45 to IAV. Correspondingly, overexpression of Lnc45 inhibited viral polymerase activity and suppressed IAV-induced cell apoptosis. Moreover, Lnc45 significantly restrained nuclear aggregation of viral NP and PA proteins during H5N1 virus infection. Further functional study revealed that the stem ring arms of Lnc45 mainly mediated the antiviral effect. Therefore, we here demonstrated that Lnc45 functions as a broad-spectrum antiviral factor to inhibit influenza virus replication probably through inhibiting polymerase activity and NP and PA nuclear accumulation via its stem ring arms. Our study not only advances our understanding of the complexity of the IAV pathogenesis but also lays the foundation for developing novel anti-IAV therapeutics targeting the host lncRNA.

Comprehensive analysis of an immune-related ceRNA network in identifying a novel lncRNA signature as a prognostic biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma

The function of competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network in the immune regulation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear. Our study aimed to construct an immune-related ceRNA network and develop an immune-related long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) signature to assess the prognosis of HCC patients and to optimize the treatment methods. We firstly constructed a ceRNA regulatory network for HCC using differentially expressed lncRNAs, mRNAs and microRNAs (miRNAs) from the Cancer Genome Atlas. A signature was constructed by 11 immune-related prognostic lncRNAs from the ceRNA network. The survival analysis and receiver operating characteristic analysis validated the reliability of the signature. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that the signature could act an independent prognostic indicator. This signature also showed high association with immune cell infiltration and immune check blockades. LINC00491 was identified as the hub lncRNA in the signature. In vitro and in vivo evidence demonstrated that silencing of LINC00491 significantly inhibited HCC growth. Finally, 59 lncRNAs, 21 miRNAs, and 26 mRNAs were obtained to build the immune-related ceRNA network for HCC. In conclusion, our novel immune-related lncRNA prognostic signature and the immune-related ceRNA network might provide in-depth insights into tumor-immune interaction of HCC and promote better individual treatment strategies in HCC patients.

Development and validation of ferroptosis-related lncRNAs signature for hepatocellular carcinoma

Background

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with high heterogeneity is one of the most frequent malignant tumors throughout the world. However, there is no research to establish a ferroptosis-related lncRNAs (FRlncRNAs) signature for the patients with HCC. Therefore, this study was designed to establish a novel FRlncRNAs signature to predict the survival of patients with HCC.

Method

The expression profiles of lncRNAs were acquired from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. FRlncRNAs co-expressed with ferroptosis-related genes were utilized to establish a signature. Cox regression was used to construct a novel three FRlncRNAs signature in the TCGA cohort, which was verified in the GEO validation cohort.

Results

Three differently expressed FRlncRNAs significantly associated with prognosis of HCC were identified, which composed a novel FRlncRNAs signature. According to the FRlncRNAs signature, the patients with HCC could be divided into low- and high-risk groups. Patients with HCC in the high-risk group displayed shorter overall survival (OS) contrasted with those in the low-risk group (P < 0.001 in TCGA cohort and P = 0.045 in GEO cohort). This signature could serve as a significantly independent predictor in Cox regression (multivariate HR > 1, P < 0.001), which was verified to a certain extent in the GEO cohort (univariate HR > 1, P < 0.05). Meanwhile, it was also a useful tool in predicting survival among each stratum of gender, age, grade, stage, and etiology,etc. This signature was connected with immune cell infiltration (i.e., Macrophage, Myeloid dendritic cell, and Neutrophil cell, etc.) and immune checkpoint blockade targets (PD-1, CTLA-4, and TIM-3).

Conclusion

The three FRlncRNAs might be potential therapeutic targets for patients, and their signature could be utilized for prognostic prediction in HCC.

Identification and validation of immune-related lncRNA prognostic signatures for melanoma

Introduction

Melanoma is a highly aggressive malignant skin tumor as well as the primary reason for skin cancer‐specific deaths. We first identified immune‐related long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) prognostic signature and found potential immunotherapeutic targets for melanoma cancer.

Methods

RNA‐seq data and clinical features of melanoma samples were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Samples of melanoma were randomly assigned to the training and testing cohort. The immune‐related lncRNA signature was then obtained via using univariate, LASSO, and multivariate Cox analysis of patients in the training cohort. Eight significant immune‐related lncRNA signature was then subsequently obtained through correlation analysis between immune‐related genes and lncRNAs. The association between risk score and immune cell infiltration was finally assessed using TIMER and CIBERSORT.

Results

Three hundred and fifty‐six immune‐related lncRNAs were obtained. Among them, eight immune‐related lncRNAs were identified to build a prognostic risk signature model. The model's performance was then confirmed using the Kaplan–Meier curves, risk plots, and time‐dependent receiver‐operating characteristic curves in the training cohort. The risk score was identified and confirmed as an independent prognostic factor through univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. These results were further verified in the testing and whole cohorts. CIBERSORT algorithm showed that the infiltration levels of T cells CD8, M1 macrophages, plasma cells, T cells CD4 memory activated, T cells gamma delta, and mast cells activated were significantly lower in the high‐risk group while the infiltration level of macrophages M0 was significantly lower in the low‐risk group.

Conclusion

The immune‐related lncRNA signature offers prognostic markers and potential immunotherapeutic targets for melanoma.

Identification of Prognostic Glycolysis-Related lncRNA Signature in Tumor Immune Microenvironment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to construct a novel risk scoring model with prognostic value that could elucidate tumor immune microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Samples and methods: Data were obtained through The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Univariate Cox analysis, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) analysis, and multivariate Cox analysis were carried out to screen for glycolysis-related long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) that could provide prognostic value. Finally, we established a risk score model to describe the characteristics of the model and verify its prediction accuracy. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves of 1, 3, and 5 years of overall survival (OS) were depicted with risk score and some clinical features. ESTIMATE algorithm, single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA), and CIBERSORT analysis were employed to reveal the characteristics of tumor immune microenvironment in HCC. The nomogram was drawn by screening indicators with high prognostic accuracy. The correlation of risk signature with immune infiltration and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy was analyzed. After enrichment of related genes, active behaviors and pathways in high-risk groups were identified and lncRNAs related to poor prognosis were validated in vitro. Finally, the impact of MIR4435-2HG upon ICB treatment was uncovered.

Results: After screening through multiple steps, four glycolysis-related lncRNAs were obtained. The risk score constructed with the four lncRNAs was found to significantly correlate with prognosis of samples. From the ROC curve of samples with 1, 3, and 5 years of OS, two indicators were identified with high prognostic accuracy and were used to draw a nomogram. Besides, the risk score significantly correlated with immune score, immune-related signature, infiltrating immune cells (i.e. B cells, etc.), and ICB key molecules (i.e. CTLA4,etc.). Gene enrichment analysis indicated that multiple biological behaviors and pathways were active in the high-risk group. In vitro validation results showed that MIR4435-2HG was highly expressed in the two cell lines, which had a significant impact on the OS of samples. Finally, we corroborated that MIR4435-2HG had intimate relationship with ICB therapy in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Conclusion: We elucidated the crucial role of risk signature in immune cell infiltration and immunotherapy, which might contribute to clinical strategies and clinical outcome prediction of HCC.

An angiogenesis-related long noncoding RNA signature correlates with prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent and lethal cancers worldwide. Neovascularization is closely related to the malignancy of tumors. We constructed a signature of angiogenesis-related long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) to predict the prognosis of patients with HCC. The lncRNA expression matrix of 424 HCC patients was downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). First, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to distinguish the differentially expressed genes of the angiogenesis genes in liver cancer and adjacent tissues. Next, a signature of angiogenesis-related lncRNAs was constructed using univariate and multivariate analyses, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to assess the accuracy. The signature and relevant clinical information were used to construct the nomogram. A 5-lncRNA signature was highly correlated with overall survival (OS) in HCC patients and performed well in evaluations using the C-index, areas under the curve, and calibration curves. In summary, the 5-lncRNA model can serve as an accurate signature to predict the prognosis of patients with liver cancer, but its mechanism of action must be further elucidated by experiments.

Immune-Related Long Non-coding RNA Signature and Clinical Nomogram to Evaluate Survival of Patients Suffering Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) turns out to be one of the most prevalent cancer types, leading to a relatively high mortality among worldwide sufferers. In this study, gene microarray data of ESCC patients were obtained from the GEO database, with the samples involved divided into a training set and a validation set. Based on the immune-related differential long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) we identified, a prognostic eight-lncRNA-based risk signature was constructed following regression analyses. Then, the predictive capacity of the model was evaluated in the training set and validation set using survival curves and receiver operation characteristic curves. In addition, univariate and multivariate regression analyses based on clinical information and the model-based risk score also demonstrated the ability of the risk score in independently determining the prognosis of patients. Besides, based on the CIBERSORT tool, the abundance of immune infiltrates in tumor samples was scored, and a significant difference was presented between the high- and low- risk groups. Correlation analysis with immune checkpoints (PD1, PDL1, and CTLA4) indicated that the eight-lncRNA signature–based risk score was negatively correlated with PD1 expression, suggesting that the eight-lncRNA signature may have an effect in immunotherapy for ESCC. Finally, GO annotation was performed for the differential mRNAs that were co-expressed with the eight lncRNAs, and it was uncovered that they were remarkably enriched in immune-related biological functions. These results suggested that the eight-lncRNA signature–based risk model could be employed as an independent biomarker for ESCC prognosis and might play a part in evaluating the response of ESCC to immunotherapy with immune checkpoint blockade.

Identification of Five Immune-Related lncRNAs Predicting Survival and Tumor Microenvironment Characteristics in Breast Cancer

A common cancer in females, breast cancer (BRCA) mortality has been recently reduced; however, the prognosis of BRCA patients remains poor. This study attempted to develop prognostic immune-related long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) for BRCA and identify the effects of these lncRNAs on the tumor microenvironment (TME). Gene expression data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were collected in order to select differentially expressed lncRNAs. Immune-related lncRNAs were downloaded from the ImmLnc database, where 316 immune-related lncRNAs were identified, 12 of which were found to be significantly related to the prognosis of BRCA patients. Multivariate cox regression analysis was then applied to construct prognostic immune-related lncRNAs as the risk model, including C6orf99, LINC00987, SIAH2-AS1, LINC01010, and ELOVL2-AS1. High-risk and low-risk groups were distinguished according to the median of immune-related risk scores. Accordingly, the overall survival (OS) in the high-risk group was observed to be shorter than that in the low-risk group. qRT-PCR analysis demonstrated that lncRNA expression levels in BRCA cell lines were in basic agreement with predictions except for LINC00987. By validating numerous clinical samples, lncRNA C6orf99 was shown to be highly expressed in the advanced stage, while LINC01010 and SIAH2-AS1 decreased in the advanced T-stage and M-stage. Moreover, the expression of LINC0098 was found to be significantly decreased among the groups (>50 years old). Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was applied to analyze the cancer hallmarks and immunological characteristics of the high-risk and low-risk groups. Importantly, the TIMER database demonstrated that this immune-related lncRNA risk model for breast cancer is related to the infiltration of immune cells. In conclusion, the results indicated that five immune-related lncRNAs could be used as a prognostic model and may even accelerate immunotherapy for BRCA patients.

The Expanding Regulatory Mechanisms and Cellular Functions of Long Non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in Neuroinflammation

LncRNAs have emerged as important regulatory molecules in biological processes. They serve as regulators of gene expression pathways through interactions with proteins, RNA, and DNA. LncRNA expression is altered in several diseases of the central nervous system (CNS), such as neurodegenerative disorders, stroke, trauma, and infection. More recently, it has become clear that lncRNAs contribute to regulating both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory pathways in the CNS. In this review, we discuss the molecular pathways involved in the expression of lncRNAs, their role and mechanism of action during gene regulation, cellular functions, and use of lncRNAs as therapeutic targets during neuroinflammation in CNS disorders.

Coding and non-coding RNA interactions reveal immune-related pathways in peripheral blood mononuclear cells derived from patients with proliferative vitreoretinopathy

BACKGROUND

Peripheral immune response has been revealed to play a critical role in proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). However, the reliable immune-related factors that are acting as prognostic indicators or therapeutic targets for PVR remain to explore further.

METHODS

In the current study, we applied whole-transcriptome sequencing to profile peripheral blood mononuclear cells from PVR patients and also analyzed lncRNA-mRNA interactions in peripheral immune cells to explore the pathways that might mediate immunopathology and resultant retinal damage in PVR. Gene ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) were employed to classify the function of these differentially expressed genes.

RESULTS

Compared to the controls, there were 319 genes upregulated, and 191 genes downregulated in PVR patients. GO, and KEGG enrichment analyses as well as IPA showed that these upregulated genes were significantly enriched in immune-related and infection-relate terms. Immune-related gene NFKBIA, CXCL2, and CXCL8 were detected as hub-genes in the co-expression network, while lncRNAs such as AC007032.1, AC037198.2, AL929472.2, and SLED1 were highly co-expressed with them. lncRNA-mRNA interactions analysis also showed that putative targeted genes of these differentially expressed lncRNAs were also significantly enriched in immune-related or infection-relate pathways.

CONCLUSION

Our study highlights the transformation of immune-related genes/pathways in PVR by comparing controls, and validates several critical genes and lncRNAs, which are serving as potential diagnostic markers for PVR patients.

Identification of immune-related lncRNA signature for predicting immune checkpoint blockade and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

An increasing body of evidence has supported that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can play as essential roles of various physiological process and pathological diseases. We aimed to construct a robust immune-associated lncRNA signature associated with the prognosis for HCC survival prediction.

METHODS

7 immune-associated lncRNAs presenting significant correlation with survival were screened through stepwise univariate Cox regression and LASSO algorithm, and multivariate Cox regression. Kaplan-Meier analysis, proportional hazards model, and ROC analyses further conducted. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was applied for functional annotation. We conducted quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction to determine NRAV expression and preliminarily explored the latent role of NRAV in prognosis of HCC patients.

RESULTS

Finally, 7 immune-related lncRNA signature composed of AC007405.3, AC023157.3, NRAV, CASC19, MSC-AS1, GASAL1, and LINC00942 were validated. This lncRNAs signature can serve as an independent predictive biomolecular factor. This signature was further confirmed in the validation group and the entire cohort. We demonstrated that NRAV was significantly upregulated in HCC cell lines and it may serve as a key regulator in HCC. Our signature was associated to apoptosis and immunologic characteristics. This signature mediated immune cell infiltration (i.e., Dendritic, etc.,) and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) immunotherapy-related molecules (i.e., CD274, etc.,).

CONCLUSION

This immune-related lncRNA signature possesses promising prognostic value in HCC and may have the potentiality to predict clinical outcome of ICB immunotherapy.

The leukocyte non-coding RNA landscape in critically ill patients with sepsis

The extent of non-coding RNA alterations in patients with sepsis and their relationship to clinical characteristics, soluble mediators of the host response to infection, as well as an advocated in vivo model of acute systemic inflammation is unknown. Here we obtained whole blood from 156 patients with sepsis and 82 healthy subjects among whom eight were challenged with lipopolysaccharide in a clinically controlled setting (human endotoxemia). Via next-generation microarray analysis of leukocyte RNA we found that long non-coding RNA and, to a lesser extent, small non-coding RNA were significantly altered in sepsis relative to health. Long non-coding RNA expression, but not small non-coding RNA, was largely recapitulated in human endotoxemia. Integrating RNA profiles and plasma protein levels revealed known as well as previously unobserved pathways, including non-sensory olfactory receptor activity. We provide a benchmark dissection of the blood leukocyte ‘regulome’ that can facilitate prioritization of future functional studies.

Chlorogenic Acid Promotes Autophagy and Alleviates Salmonella Typhimurium Infection Through the lncRNAGAS5/miR-23a/PTEN Axis and the p38 MAPK Pathway

Background

Salmonella typhimurium (ST) causes several intestinal diseases. Polyphenols including chlorogenic acid (CGA) inhibit pathogenesis.

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the mechanisms of CGA in ST infection.

Methods

The intestinal pathological changes and survival rate of ST-infected mice were measured to verify the protection of CGA on ST infection. The antibacterial effects of CGA in vitro on the invasion to intestinal epithelial cells and autophagy was evaluated. The relationships among GAS5, miR-23a, and PTEN were verified. Expression of inflammation- and autophagy-related proteins was detected.

Results

CGA treatment alleviated pathological damage, improved the secretion disturbance of intestinal cytokines caused by ST infection, and reduced the mortality of mice. Intestinal GAS5 was upregulated after CGA treatment. LncRNA GAS5 competitively bound to miR-23a to upregulate PTEN and inhibit the p38 MAPK pathway. CGA regulated the p38 MAPK pathway through lncRNA GAS5/miR-23a/PTEN axis to promote autophagy in ST infection. The functional rescue experiments of miR-23a and PTEN further identified these effects.

Conclusion

CGA promotes autophagy and inhibits ST infection through the GAS5/miR-23a/PTEN axis and the p38 MAPK pathway.

Identification of Tumor Microenvironment-Related Prognostic Biomarkers in Luminal Breast Cancer

Background: The tumor microenvironment (TME) has been reported to have significant value in the diagnosis and prognosis of cancers. This study aimed to identify key biomarkers in the TME of luminal breast cancer (BC).

Methods: We obtained immune scores (ISs) and stromal scores (SSs) for The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) luminal BC cohort from the online ESTIMATE (Estimation of STromal and Immune cells in MAlignant Tumor tissues using Expression data) portal. The relationships between ISs and SSs and the overall survival of luminal BC patients were assessed by the Kaplan-Meier method. The differentially expressed messenger RNAs (DEmRNAs) related to the ISs and SSs were subjected to functional enrichment analysis. Additionally, a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network was constructed with differentially expressed microRNAs (DEmiRNAs) and long noncoding RNAs (DElncRNAs). Furthermore, a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was established to analyze the DEmRNAs in the ceRNA network. Then, survival analysis of biomarkers involved in the ceRNA network was carried out to explore their prognostic value. Finally, these biomarkers were validated using the luminal BC dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database.

Results: The results showed that ISs were significantly associated with longer survival times of luminal BC patients. Functional enrichment analysis showed that the DEmRNAs were mainly associated with immune response, antigen binding, and the extracellular region. In the PPI network, the top 10 DEmRNAs were identified as hub genes that affected the TME of luminal BC. Finally, two DEmiRNAs, two DElncRNAs, and 17 DEmRNAs of the ceRNA network associated with the TME were shown to have prognostic value. Subsequently, the expression of 15 prognostic biomarkers was validated in one additional dataset (GSE81002). In particular, one lncRNA (GVINP1) and five mRNAs (CCDC69, DOCK2, IKZF1, JCHAIN, and NCKAP1L) were novel biomarkers.

Conclusions: Our studies demonstrated that ISs were associated with the survival of luminal BC patients, and a set of novel biomarkers that might play a prognostic role in the TME of luminal BC was identified.

Interferon-Mediated Long Non-Coding RNA Response in Macrophages in the Context of HIV

Interferons play a critical role in the innate immune response against a variety of pathogens, such as HIV-1. Recent studies have shown that long non-coding genes are part of a reciprocal feedforward/feedback relationship with interferon expression. They presumably contribute to the cell type specificity of the interferon response, such as the phenotypic and functional transition of macrophages throughout the immune response. However, no comprehensive understanding exists today about the IFN–lncRNA interplay in macrophages, also a sanctuary for latent HIV-1. Therefore, we completed a poly-A+ RNAseq analysis on monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) treated with members of all three types of IFNs (IFN-α, IFN-ε, IFN-γ or IFN-λ) and on macrophages infected with HIV-1, revealing an extensive non-coding IFN and/or HIV-1 response. Moreover, co-expression correlation with mRNAs was used to identify important (long) non-coding hub genes within IFN- or HIV-1-associated gene clusters. This study identified and prioritized IFN related hub lncRNAs for further functional validation.

A novel antiviral lncRNA, EDAL, shields a T309 O-GlcNAcylation site to promote EZH2 lysosomal degradation

BACKGROUND

The central nervous system (CNS) is vulnerable to viral infection, yet few host factors in the CNS are known to defend against invasion by neurotropic viruses. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been revealed to play critical roles in a wide variety of biological processes and are highly abundant in the mammalian brain, but their roles in defending against invasion of pathogens into the CNS remain unclear.

RESULTS

We report here that multiple neurotropic viruses, including rabies virus, vesicular stomatitis virus, Semliki Forest virus, and herpes simplex virus 1, elicit the neuronal expression of a host-encoded lncRNA EDAL. EDAL inhibits the replication of these neurotropic viruses in neuronal cells and rabies virus infection in mouse brains. EDAL binds to the conserved histone methyltransferase enhancer of zest homolog 2 (EZH2) and specifically causes EZH2 degradation via lysosomes, reducing the cellular H3K27me3 level. The antiviral function of EDAL resides in a 56-nt antiviral substructure through which its 18-nt helix-loop intimately contacts multiple EZH2 sites surrounding T309, a known O-GlcNAcylation site. EDAL positively regulates the transcription of Pcp4l1 encoding a 10-kDa peptide, which inhibits the replication of multiple neurotropic viruses.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings show that a neuronal lncRNA can exert an effective antiviral function via blocking a specific O-GlcNAcylation that determines EZH2 lysosomal degradation, rather than the traditional interferon-dependent pathway.

Identification and Clinical Validation of 4-lncRNA Signature for Predicting Survival in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Background

The prognosis of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is still poor due to the lack of effective prognostic biomarkers. lncRNA is an important survival prognostic indicator and has important biological functions in tumorigenesis.

Methods

RNA-seq was re-annotated, and comprehensive clinical information was obtained from the GEO database. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to construct the lncRNA prognosis signature. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) enrichment analysis method is used to explore the possible mechanism of the selected lncRNA influencing HNSCC development. The rms package was used to calculate the C-index to evaluate the overall prediction performance between different signature. PCR is used to detect the expression of selected lncRNA in cancer and adjacent tissues.

Results

In the GSE65858 training cohort, 124 probes significantly related to prognosis were identified, 11 significant lncRNAs were further selected by rbsurv dimensionality reduction analysis. Finally, 4-lncRNA signature was constructed by multivariate Cox analysis. This signature was associated with tumor-associated pathway and is an independent factor of the patient’s prognosis. 4-lncRNA signature has strong robustness and can exert stable prediction performance in different cohorts. A nomogram comprising the prognostic model to predict the overall survival was established. The 4-lncRNA signature was significantly upregulated in HNSCC samples.

Conclusion

The predictive model and nomogram will enable patients to be more accurately managed in trials and clinical practices and could be applied as a new prognostic model for predicting survival of HNSCC patients.

Distinct type 2-high inflammation associated molecular signatures of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps with comorbid asthma

Background

Patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) and comorbid asthma have more severe disease and are difficult to treat. However, the molecular endotypes associated with CRSwNP with comorbid asthma (CRSwNP + AS) are not clear. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of type 2 inflammation and the molecular signatures associated with CRSwNP + AS.

Methods

A total of 195 subjects; including 65 CRSwNP + AS patients, 99 CRSwNP-alone patients, and 31 healthy control subjects; were enrolled in the study. Nasal tissues from patients with CRSwNP + AS, CRSwNP-alone and control subjects were assessed for infiltration of inflammatory cells and concentrations of total IgE. Whole-transcriptome sequencing was performed and differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and their associated pathways were analyzed. The correlations between type 2 cytokines and local eosinophils, tissue IgE, and transcriptome signatures were evaluated.

Results

Significantly higher local eosinophil infiltration and higher levels of total IgE were found in nasal tissues from CRSwNP + AS patients than in nasal tissues from CRSwNP-alone patients. Furthermore, atopy and recurrence were significantly more frequent in patients with CRSwNP + AS than in patients with CRSwNP-alone (62.5% vs 28.6% and 66.7% vs 26.9%, respectively). RNA sequencing analysis identified 1988 common DE-mRNAs, and 176 common DE-lncRNAs shared by CRSwNP + AS versus control and CRSwNP-alone versus control. Weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) identified LINC01146 as hub lncRNA dysregulated in both subtypes of CRSwNP. Overall, 968 DE-mRNAs and 312 DE-lncRNAs were identified between CRSwNP + AS and CRSwNP-alone. Both pathway enrichment analysis and WGCNA indicated that the phenotypic traits of CRSwNP + AS were mainly associated with higher activities of arachidonic acid metabolism, type 2 cytokines related pathway and fibrinolysis pathway, and lower activity of IL-17 signalling pathway. Furthermore, the expression of type 2 cytokines; IL5 and IL13, was positively correlated with local eosinophil infiltration, tissue IgE level, and the expression of DE-mRNAs that related to arachidonic acid metabolism. Moreover, WGCNA identified HK3-006 as hub lncRNA in yellow module that most positively correlated with phenotypic traits of CRSwNP + AS.

Conclusions

Patients with CRSwNP + AS have distinct type 2-high inflammation-associated molecular signatures in nasal tissues compared to patients with CRSwNP-alone.

CRNDE: an oncogenic long non-coding RNA in cancers

Colorectal neoplasia differentially expressed (CRNDE) is a long non-coding RNA which has been proved upregulated in various cancers. Meanwhile, CRNDE has been demonstrated to be involved in multiple biological processes of different cancers according to previous study. Moreover, recent studies suggested CRNDE might be a potential diagnostic biomarker and prognostic predictor due to its high sensitivity and specificity in cancer tissues and plasma. In this review, we summarize the biological function of CRNDE and the relevant mechanisms in cancers to establish a molecular basis for the clinical use of CRNDE in the future.

Immune-related long noncoding RNA signature for predicting survival and immune checkpoint blockade in hepatocellular carcinoma

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) show multiple functions, including immune response. Recently, the immune-related lncRNAs have been reported in some cancers. We first investigated the immune-related lncRNA signature as a potential target in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) survival. The training set (n = 368) and the independent external validation cohort (n = 115) were used. Immune genes and lncRNAs coexpression were constructed to identify immune-related lncRNAs. Cox regression analyses were perfumed to establish the immune-related lncRNA signature. Regulatory roles of this signature on cancer pathways and the immunologic features were investigated. The correlation between immune checkpoint inhibitors and this signature was examined. In this study, the immune-related lncRNA signature was identified in HCC, which could stratify patients into high- and low-risk groups. This immune-related lncRNA signature was correlated with disease progression and worse survival and was an independent prognostic biomarker. Our immune-related lncRNA signature was still a powerful tool in predicting survival in each stratum of age, gender, and tumor stage. This signature mediated cell cycle, glycolysis, DNA repair, mammalian target of rapamycin signaling, and immunologic characteristics (i.e., natural killer cells vs. Th1 cells down, etc). This signature was associated with immune cell infiltration (i.e., macrophages M0, Tregs, CD4 memory T cells, and macrophages M1, etc.,) and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) immunotherapy-related molecules (i.e., PD-L1, PD-L2, and IDO1). Our findings suggested that the immune-related lncRNA signature had an important value for survival prediction and may have the potential to measure the response to ICB immunotherapy. This signature may guide the selection of the immunotherapy for HCC.

The how and why of lncRNA function: An innate immune perspective

Next-generation sequencing has provided a more complete picture of the composition of the human transcriptome indicating that much of the "blueprint" is a vastness of poorly understood non-protein-coding transcripts. This includes a newly identified class of genes called long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). The lack of sequence conservation for lncRNAs across species meant that their biological importance was initially met with some skepticism. LncRNAs mediate their functions through interactions with proteins, RNA, DNA, or a combination of these. Their functions can often be dictated by their localization, sequence, and/or secondary structure. Here we provide a review of the approaches typically adopted to study the complexity of these genes with an emphasis on recent discoveries within the innate immune field. Finally, we discuss the challenges, as well as the emergence of new technologies that will continue to move this field forward and provide greater insight into the biological importance of this class of genes. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: ncRNA in control of gene expression edited by Kotb Abdelmohsen.

Long non-coding RNA GACAT3 promotes liver cancer progression by regulating the proliferation, apoptosis and migration of tumor cells

Long non-coding RNA gastric cancer associated transcript 3 (GACAT3), is a newly identified non-coding RNA, which has been found to be involved in the tumorigenesis of gastric cancer. However, the biological function of GACAT3 in liver cancer remains unclear. The present study aimed to determine the expression level and function of GACAT3 in liver cancer. The authors cultured liver cancer cells in vitro and GACAT3 was silenced in the cells. Cell proliferation, apoptosis and migration were determined by MTT assay, flow cytometric analysis and transwell assay, respectively. It was demonstrated that GACAT3 was upregulated in liver cancer tissues. The inhibition of GACAT3 decreased the ability of hepatoma cells to proliferate and migrate, and increased apoptosis of the cells. These findings provide the first evidence, to the best of our knowledge, of the exact role of GACAT3 in liver cancer, suggesting GACAT3 as a potential target for liver cancer therapy in the future.

Overexpression of long non-coding RNA RP11-363E7.4 inhibits proliferation and invasion in gastric cancer

LncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 has been shown to be downregulated in gastric cancer (GC), while the effect of lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 on GC and its potential molecular mechanisms is unclear. The purpose of this study was to explore the functional role and underlying molecular mechanisms of lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 involved in GC progress.To address the question, quantitative real‐time PCR assay was performed to confirm lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 expression levels in GC tissues and cell lines. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion were estimated using Cell Counting Kit‐8, colony formation, scratch wound healing and Transwell assays. Potential molecular mechanisms were evaluated using western blot assay. The results showed that lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 was significantly downregulated in GC cell lines and 82 paired tissues. The correlation between expression and clinicopathological features indicated that low expression of lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 was associated with T stage (P = .010). Functional experiments showed that overexpression of lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 prevented proliferation, migration, and invasion and induced apoptosis of GC cells. Western blot assay revealed that lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 functioned via the p53, Bax/Bcl‐2, β‐catenin pathway. In summary, this study revealed that lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 functioned as a tumour suppressor by inhibiting proliferation, migration, and invasion and inducing apoptosis of GC cells. Significance of the study:LncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 has been shown to be downregulated in GC, while the effect of lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 on GC and its potential molecular mechanism is unclear. We revealed that lncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 functioned as a tumour suppressor by inhibiting proliferation, migration, and invasion and inducing apoptosis of GC cells. LncRNA RP11‐363E7.4 might become an attractive diagnostic and prognostic biomarker of GC and a promising target for GC treatment.

Long Non-coding RNAs: Emerging Roles in the Immunosuppressive Tumor Microenvironment

Tumor immunosuppression may assist the immune escape of cancer cells, which promotes tumor metastasis and resistance to chemo-radiotherapy. The therapeutic strategies against tumor immunosuppression mainly focus on blocking immune checkpoint receptors, enhancing T-cell recognition and neutralizing inhibitory molecules. Although immunotherapies based on these strategies have improved the clinical outcomes, immunological nonresponse and resistance are two barriers to tumor eradication. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify new biomarkers for patient selection and therapeutic targets for the development of combination regimen with immunotherapy. Recent studies have reported that non-protein-coding modulators exhibit important functions in post-transcriptional gene regulation, which subsequently modulates multiple pathophysiological processes, including neoplastic transformation. Differentiated from microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are reported to be involved in various processes of the immune response in the tumor microenvironment (TME) to promote tumor immunosuppression. Currently, studies on tumor immunity regulated by lncRNAs are mainly confined to certain types of cancer cells or stromal cells. Additionally, the majority of studies are focused on the events involved in T cells and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). Although the reported studies have indicated the significance of lncRNAs in immunotherapy, the lack of comprehensive studies prevents us from exploring useful lncRNAs. In the current review, we have summarized the roles of lncRNAs in tumor immune response, and highlighted major lncRNAs as potential biomarkers or therapeutic targets for clinical application of immunotherapy.

Profiles of Long Non-Coding RNAs and mRNA Expression in Human Macrophages Regulated by Interleukin-27

Macrophages play an essential role in the immune system. Recent studies have shown that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can regulate genes encoding products involved in the immune response. Interleukin (IL)-27 is a member of the IL-6/IL-12 family of cytokines with broad anti-viral effects that inhibits human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type-1 and herpes simplex virus (HSV). However, little is known about the role of lncRNAs in macrophages affected by IL-27. Therefore, we investigated the expression profiles of mRNA and lncRNA in human monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) regulated by IL-27. Monocytes were differentiated in the presence of macrophage-colony stimulatory factor (M-CSF)- or human AB serum with or without IL-27, and these cells were the subject for the profile analysis using RNA-Seq. We identified 146 lncRNAs (including 88 novel ones) and 434 coding genes were differentially regulated by IL-27 in both M-CSF- and AB serum-induced macrophages. Using weighted gene co-expression network analysis, we obtained four modules. The immune system, cell cycle, and regulation of complement cascade pathways were enriched in different modules. The network of mRNAs and lncRNAs in the pathways suggest that lncRNAs might regulate immune activity in macrophages. This study provides potential insight into the roles of lncRNA in macrophages regulated by IL-27.

Aging, Melatonin, and the Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Networks

Aging and various age-related diseases are associated with reductions in melatonin secretion, proinflammatory changes in the immune system, a deteriorating circadian system, and reductions in sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) activity. In non-tumor cells, several effects of melatonin are abolished by inhibiting SIRT1, indicating mediation by SIRT1. Melatonin is, in addition to its circadian and antioxidant roles, an immune stimulatory agent. However, it can act as either a pro- or anti-inflammatory regulator in a context-dependent way. Melatonin can stimulate the release of proinflammatory cytokines and other mediators, but also, under different conditions, it can suppress inflammation-promoting processes such as NO release, activation of cyclooxygenase-2, inflammasome NLRP3, gasdermin D, toll-like receptor-4 and mTOR signaling, and cytokine release by SASP (senescence-associated secretory phenotype), and amyloid-β toxicity. It also activates processes in an anti-inflammatory network, in which SIRT1 activation, upregulation of Nrf2 and downregulation of NF-κB, and release of the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-4 and IL-10 are involved. A perhaps crucial action may be the promotion of macrophage or microglia polarization in favor of the anti-inflammatory phenotype M2. In addition, many factors of the pro- and anti-inflammatory networks are subject to regulation by microRNAs that either target mRNAs of the respective factors or upregulate them by targeting mRNAs of their inhibitor proteins.

Long Non-Coding RNAs Associated with Heterochromatin Function in Immune Cells in Psychosis

Psychosis is associated with chronic immune dysregulation. Many long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) display abnormal expression during activation of immune responses, and play a role in heterochromatic regulation of gene promoters. We have measured lncRNAs MEG3, PINT and GAS5, selected for their previously described association with heterochromatin. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated from blood samples collected from 86 participants with a diagnosis of psychosis and 44 control participants. Expression was assessed in relation to diagnosis, illness acuity status, and treatment with antipsychotic medication. We observed diagnostic differences with MEG3, PINT and GAS5, and symptom acuity effect with MEG3 and GAS5. Medication effects were evident in those currently on treatment with antipsychotics when compared to drug-naïve participants. We observed that clinical diagnosis and symptom acuity predict selected lncRNA expression. Particular noteworthy is the differential expression of MEG3 in drug naïve participants compared to those treated with risperidone. Additionally, an in vitro cell model using M2^tol macrophages was used to test the effects of the antipsychotic drug risperidone on the expression of these lncRNAs using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Significant but differential effects of risperidone were observed in M2^tol macrophages indicating a clear ability of antipsychotic medications to modify lncRNA expression.

Long noncoding RNA expression profile and association with SLEDAI score in monocyte-derived dendritic cells from patients with systematic lupus erythematosus

BACKGROUND

Monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) play important roles in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Aberrant expression of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) could affect the function of moDCs. The aim of this study was to explore the lncRNA expression profile in moDCs of SLE patients to provide new insights into SLE.

METHODS

LncRNA and mRNA microarrays were performed to identify differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs in moDCs of SLE patients compared with normal controls. Bioinformatics analysis was also performed. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to validate the results, and correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between these aberrantly expressed lncRNAs and SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI) scores.

RESULTS

According to the gene expression profiles, 163 lncRNAs were differentially expressed between SLE and normal controls, including 118 that were upregulated and 45 that were downregulated. A total of 137 mRNAs were differentially expressed in moDCs of patients with SLE, including 83 that were upregulated and 54 that were downregulated. Furthermore, qPCR data showed that lncRNA ENST00000604411.1 (18.23-fold, P < 0.001) and ENST00000501122.2 (1.96-fold, P < 0.001) were upregulated and the other two lncRNAs, lnc-HSFY2-3:3 (0.42-fold, P < 0.001) and lnc-SERPINB9-1:2 (0.50-fold, P = 0.040), were downregulated in moDCs of SLE patients. The expression levels of ENST00000604411.1 (r = 0.593, P = 0.020) and ENST00000501122.2 (r = 0.539, P = 0.038) were positively correlated with the SLEDAI score, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate that the abnormal expression of lncRNAs in moDCs may be involved in the pathological processes of SLE. The expression level of ENST00000604411.1 and ENST00000501122.2 may have potential value for the assessment of disease activity in SLE.