Long non-coding RNAs in human early embryonic development and their potential in ART

Area of Science:

• Genetics and Genomics
• Developmental Biology
• Stem Cell Biology

Background:

• Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a class of RNA molecules with diverse functional roles in biological processes.
• Their involvement in human early embryo development and pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) is an area of recent investigation.
• The number of identified lncRNAs is rapidly growing, exceeding that of protein-coding genes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review current knowledge on lncRNAs, focusing on their expression patterns and roles in early human embryo development.
• To examine the function of lncRNAs in pluripotent stem cells (PSCs).
• To illustrate lncRNA expression signatures using public mRNA sequencing (mRNA-seq) data.

Main Methods:

• Literature search of PubMed and EMBASE databases for lncRNAs, human embryo development, and PSCs up to February 2016.
• Analysis of publicly available RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) data from human oocytes, pre-implantation embryos, PSCs, and adult tissues.
• Description of specific lncRNA expression patterns in early human embryos based on RNA-seq data.

Main Results:

• LncRNA abundance significantly changes during human early embryonic development, indicating dynamic regulation.
• Specific lncRNA signatures have been identified in human pre-implantation embryos.
• Some lncRNAs found in early development are also expressed in human cancer tissues.

Conclusions:

• LncRNAs are key regulators of gene expression and play critical roles in embryonic development.
• Identified lncRNA signatures in embryos may serve as candidate biomarkers for assessing oocyte and embryo quality.
• These findings have implications for improving IVF success rates and advancing regenerative medicine applications.