Construction of ceRNA Regulatory Network in Human Oocytes

Cryogenic freezing, often known as cryopreservation, is a technique for preserving human oocytes.

In this study, differentially expressed long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) were identified using the human frozen oocyte dataset GSE69768 from the Gene Expression Database (GEO). Subsequently, combined with the microRNA atlas database, the miRNAs combined with differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) were predicted, and the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA interaction relationship and competitive endogenous (ceRNA) regulatory network were obtained.

The results revealed that multiple DElncRNAs and DEmRNAs were involved in the ceRNA network of the human oocyte. Finally, GO functional annotation and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were performed on the differentially expressed mRNA (DEmRNA) in the ceRNA network, and the biological processes and pathways that may be related to the ceRNA network in frozen oocytes were explored.

In conclusion, in the ceRNA network for human oocyte, lncRNA, mRNA, and miRNA do not each operate via a distinct, independent mechanism. Not only does the RNA-RNA contact involve the ceRNA regulatory mechanism, but it also involves interactions between proteins that are encoded by genes. Furthermore, the negative effects of inter-individual variations and instability on the quality of high-throughput detection cannot be completely ruled out due to the paucity of human oocyte data containing both mRNA and lncRNA expression profiles.