Identification of differentially expressed long noncoding RNAs in human knee osteoarthritis

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are considered a novel class of regulatory factors in many diseases, but their biological function and the signaling pathway involved in osteoarthritic (OA) remain unknown. To identify the lncRNAs specifically expressed in OA cartilage, the expression of lncRNAs in OA cartilage was measured using an illumina sequencing platform. Furthermore, differentially expressed transcripts of uncertain coding potential (TUCPs) and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) were identified. The colocated target genes and the possible role of lncRNAs as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) were predicted. Based on 19 samples from osteoarthritis patients of knees, 580 significantly dysregulated lncRNAs as well as differently expressed TUCPs and mRNAs were identified. Four differently expressed lncRNAs (SNHG5, ZFAS1, GAS5, and DANCR) involved in OA cartilage were analyzed by protein-protein interactions network and ceRNA regulatory network. Part of our results were consistent with previous studies, and 96 novel differently expressed lncRNAs were identified in OA. These results could expand our knowledge of the OA mechanism.