Aberrantly expressed long non-coding RNAs in air pollution-induced congenital defects

Air pollution has been a serious public health issue over the past few decades particularly in developing countries. Air pollution exposure during pregnancy poses potential threat to offspring as the deleterious substances might pass through placenta to alter foetal development. A growing number of studies have demonstrated that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) participate in the development of many diseases, including congenital defects. Here, we used RNA sequencing to identify differentially expressed lncRNAs in air pollution-exposed rat embryos compared with control group. Our data suggested that 554 lncRNAs (216 up-regulated and 338 down-regulated) were significantly differentially expressed in the air pollution-exposed embryos. Moreover, potential cellular functions of these deregulated lncRNAs were predicted via KEGG signal pathway/GO enrichment analyses, which suggested the possible involvements of neurological process, sensory perception of smell and the G-protein signalling pathway. Furthermore, potential functional network of deregulated lncRNAs and their correlated mRNAs in the development of congenital spinal abnormality was established. Our data suggested that lncRNAs may play a vital role in the pathophysiology of air pollution-exposed congenital spinal malformation.