LncRNA4930473A02Rik promotes cardiac hypertrophy by regulating TCF7 via sponging miR-135a in mice

Cardiac hypertrophy is a common pathological change accompanied by various cardiovascular diseases; however, its underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Mounting evidence indicates that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are novel transcripts involved in regulating multiple biological processes. However, little is known about their role in regulating cardiac hypertrophy. This study revealed a novel lncRNA4930473A02Rik (abbreviated as lncRNAA02Rik), which showed considerably increased expression in hypertrophic mouse hearts in vivo and angiotensin-II (Ang-II)-induced hypertrophic cardiomyocytes in vitro. Notably, lncRNAA02Rik knockdown partly ameliorated Ang-II induced hypertrophic cardiomyocytes in vitro and hypertrophic mouse heart function in vivo, whereas lncRNAA02Rik overexpression promoted cardiac hypertrophy in vitro. Furthermore, lncRNAA02Rik acted as a competing endogenous RNA by sponging miR-135a, while forced expression of lncRNAA02Rik could repress its activity and expression. Furthermore, forcing miR-135a overexpression exerted a significant protective effect against cardiac hypertrophy by inhibiting the activity of its downstream target TCF7, a critical member of Wnt signaling, and the protective effect could be reversed by AMO-135a. Luciferase assay showed direct interactions among lncRNAA02Rik, miR-135a, and TCF7. Altogether, our study demonstrated that lncRNAA02Rik upregulation could promote cardiac hypertrophy development via modulating miR-135a expression levels and TCF7 activity. Therefore, lncRNAA02Rik inhibition might be considered as a novel potential therapeutic strategy for cardiac hypertrophy.