Aberrantly expressed long noncoding RNAs in hypertrophic scar fibroblasts in vitro: A microarray study

Area of Science:

• Molecular Biology
• Dermatology
• Genetics

Background:

• Hypertrophic scars result from abnormal wound healing, characterized by excessive fibroblast proliferation and extracellular matrix accumulation.
• Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are increasingly recognized for their roles in gene regulation and disease pathogenesis.
• The specific involvement of lncRNAs in hypertrophic scar development remains largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the differential expression profiles of lncRNAs in fibroblasts from hypertrophic scars compared to normal skin.
• To explore the potential mechanisms underlying hypertrophic scar development involving lncRNAs.
• To identify novel lncRNAs and their regulatory roles in hypertrophic scar pathogenesis.

Main Methods:

• Microarray analysis to identify differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs.
• Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) for transcript validation.
• Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses.
• Construction of competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) and coding-noncoding co-expression networks using bioinformatics.

Main Results:

• Microarray analysis revealed significant differential expression of 6,104 lncRNAs and 2,952 mRNAs.
• Bioinformatic analyses identified NR_125715 and NR_046402 as key lncRNAs potentially regulating targets like TGFB2 and POLD1 via miRNA interactions (ceRNA network).
• Co-expression analysis demonstrated a correlation between NR_125715/NR_046402 expression and TGFB2/POLD1 mRNA levels.

Conclusions:

• This study identifies specific differentially expressed lncRNAs in hypertrophic scar fibroblasts, offering novel insights into scar pathogenesis.
• The findings highlight the functional interactions between lncRNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs), and mRNAs in hypertrophic scar formation.
• These identified lncRNAs may represent potential novel targets for the diagnosis and treatment of hypertrophic scars.