Differential expression profile of long non-coding RNAs in human thoracic aortic aneurysm

Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) is progressive fatal aortic pathological dilation, which is characterized by increased proteoglycans and loss of elastic fibers. Recent advances in long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), an important regulator in many biological processes, suggested the close correlation between expression patterns and disease progression. In the present study, the ascending aortic tissues were collected from ascending TAA patients (n = 33) and organ donors (n = 16). Microarray analysis and real-time PCR were then applied to detect the lncRNA expression profiles. A total of 147 differentially expressed lncRNAs were determined, including 104 upregulated and 43 downregulated lncRNAs. Bioinformatics analysis showed 51.7% of differentially expressed lncRNAs were sense-overlapping, and most of the down-regulated lncRNAs were located on chromosome 1, 7, and 12. Subgroup analysis of TAA patients indicated that the expression of lnc-HLTF-5 was significantly higher in hypertension group than non-hypertension group (P < 0.05). Spearman correlation analysis further confirmed that the lnc-HLTF-5 level was positively correlated with the expanded ascending aortic diameter (r_s  = 0.483, P = 0.004) and MMP9 level (r_s  = 0.465, P = 0.006). Our results expanded the lncRNA expression patterns in aortic disease, and provided experimental basis for future investigation on TAA pathogenesis.