Down-regulation of LncRNA 2900052N01Rik inhibits LPS-induced B cell function in vitro

B cells play a crucial role in immune responses. The main functions include B cell protective antibody production, inflammation reduction, activation and proliferation. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to act as important regulators of many pathological processes. However, few lncRNAs have been reported to affect B cell function. In this study, we explored the expression and role of lncRNA 2900052N01Rik (lnc-290) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced B cells purified from mouse spleens in vitro. Here, we confirmed that lnc-290 was highly expressed in B cells stimulated by LPS. Knockdown of lnc-290 inhibited the expression of CD69/CD86 and the growth of B cells. Moreover, down-regulated lnc-290 reduced B cell differentiation and immunoglobulin production in vitro. In addition, we found that lnc-290 regulated LPS-induced B cell activation via the NF-κB/ERK pathways. Interestingly, abnormal lnc-290 expression did not alter the B cell activation or proliferation induced by IL-4 or CD40/CD40L. Accordingly, these results indicated, for the first time, that lnc-290 down-regulation inhibits LPS-induced B cell proliferation, activation and differentiation by blocking the LPS/TLR4 signaling pathway. Together, the in vitro data demonstrate that lnc-290 participated in the inflammation and tissue damage mediated by LPS-activated B cells.