DNM3OS regulates GAPDH expression and influences the molecular pathogenesis of Huntington's disease

Emerging studies have suggested that dysregulated long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are associated with the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases (NDD) including Huntington's disease (HD); however, the pathophysiological mechanism by which lncRNA dysregulation participates in HD remains to be elucidated. Here, we aim to analyse the expression of lncRNA-DNM3OS and identify the possible DNM3OS/miR-196b-5p/GAPDH pathway. PC12 cells induced by rat pheochromocytoma expressing HD gene exon 1 fragment with either 23 or 74 polyglutamine repeats fused to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) were cultured. Our results show that GAPDH and DNM3OS were upregulated in HD PC12 cells, downregulation of which lead to inhibition of aggregate formation accompanied by a decreased apoptosis rate and increased relative ROS levels and cell viability. Moreover, upregulated DNM3OS decreased the expression of miR-196b-5p by sponging, and GAPDH was a direct target of miR-196b-5p, playing an important pathogenic role in the formation of aggregates in the HD cell model. Our study uncovers a novel DNM3OS/miR-196b-5p/GAPDH pathway involved in the molecular pathogenesis of HD, which may offer a potential therapeutic strategy for HD.