Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 9, 2025

In Vivo Nanovector Delivery of a Heart-specific MicroRNA-sponge
09:53

In Vivo Nanovector Delivery of a Heart-specific MicroRNA-sponge

Published on: June 15, 2018

7.8K

lncRNA-SNHG14 Promotes Atherosclerosis by Regulating RORα Expression through Sponge miR-19a-3p

Baoliang Zhu1, Jing Liu2, Ying Zhao3

  • 1Department of Physiology, Jining Medical College, Jining, Shandong, China.

Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine
|September 10, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Long non-coding RNA SNHG14, crucial in coronary heart disease (CHD), inhibits vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and promotes apoptosis. This finding offers new insights into atherosclerosis mechanisms.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Biology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Atherosclerosis Research

Background:

  • Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of mortality, with vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation and apoptosis imbalance driving atherosclerosis.
  • The role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in cardiovascular disease pathogenesis is increasingly recognized.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of lncRNA-SNHG14 in regulating VSMC behavior during atherosclerosis.
  • To elucidate the molecular mechanisms involving lncRNA-SNHG14, miR-19a-3p, and RORα in VSMCs.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of lncRNA-SNHG14 expression in atherosclerotic plaque tissues from ApoE-/- mice.
  • Overexpression of lncRNA-SNHG14 in VSMCs.
  • Luciferase reporter gene assays to confirm interactions between miR-19a-3p and RORα.
  • Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) to assess gene expression levels.

Main Results:

  • lncRNA-SNHG14 expression was significantly decreased in atherosclerotic plaques.
  • Overexpression of lncRNA-SNHG14 inhibited VSMC proliferation and promoted apoptosis.
  • A reciprocal regulatory relationship was identified between lncRNA-SNHG14 and miR-19a-3p.
  • miR-19a-3p directly targets the 3'UTR of RORα, and SNHG14 affects RORα mRNA levels.

Conclusions:

  • lncRNA-SNHG14 plays a protective role in atherosclerosis by modulating the VSMC apoptosis/proliferation balance.
  • The SNHG14/miR-19a-3p/RORα axis represents a potential therapeutic target for treating atherosclerosis.

Related Concept Videos

lncRNA - Long Non-coding RNAs02:39

lncRNA - Long Non-coding RNAs

In humans, more than 80% of the genome gets transcribed. However, only around 2% of the genome codes for proteins. The remaining part produces non-coding RNAs which includes ribosomal RNAs, transfer RNAs, telomerase RNAs, and regulatory RNAs, among other types. A large number of regulatory non-coding RNAs have been classified into two groups depending upon their length – small non-coding RNAs, such as microRNA, which are less than 200 nucleotides in length, and long non-coding RNA...
9.6K
lncRNA - Long Non-coding RNAs02:39

lncRNA - Long Non-coding RNAs

3.2K
MicroRNAs01:22

MicroRNAs

MicroRNA (miRNA) are short, regulatory RNA transcribed from introns (non-coding regions of a gene) or intergenic regions (stretches of DNA present between genes). Several processing steps are required to form biologically active, mature miRNA. The initial transcript, called primary miRNA (pri-mRNA), base-pairs with itself, forming a stem-loop structure. Within the nucleus, an endonuclease enzyme, called Drosha, shortens the stem-loop structure into hairpin-shaped pre-miRNA. After the pre-miRNA...
3.5K
MicroRNAs01:22

MicroRNAs

MicroRNA (miRNA) are short, regulatory RNA transcribed from introns—non-coding regions of a gene—or intergenic regions—stretches of DNA present between genes. Several processing steps are required to form biologically active, mature miRNA. The initial transcript, called primary miRNA (pri-mRNA), base-pairs with itself forming a stem-loop structure. Within the nucleus, an endonuclease enzyme, called Drosha, shortens the stem-loop structure into hairpin-shaped pre-miRNA. After...
23.6K
Regulation of Nuclear Protein Sorting01:45

Regulation of Nuclear Protein Sorting

Nuclear protein sorting regulates nucleus composition and gene expression, crucial for determining the fate of a eukaryotic cell. Hence, the entry and exit of molecules across the nuclear envelope is a tightly controlled process. Nuclear protein sorting can be inhibited by one of the following ways: 1) masking cargo signal sequences, 2) modifying the nuclear receptor's affinity for cargo, 3) controlling the nuclear pore size, 4) retaining the cargo during its transit to the cytosol or the...
3.0K
Experimental RNAi02:15

Experimental RNAi

RNA interference (RNAi) is a cellular mechanism that inhibits gene expression by suppressing its transcription or activating the RNA degradation process. The mechanism was discovered by Andrew Fire and Craig Mello in 1998 in plants. Today, it is observed in almost all eukaryotes, including protozoa, flies, nematodes, insects, parasites, and mammals. This precise cellular mechanism of gene silencing has been developed into a technique that provides an efficient way to identify and determine the...
7.0K