lncRNA-mRNA Co-Expression and Regulation Analysis in Lung Fibroblasts from Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive lung disease marked by abnormal accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) due to dysregulated expression of various RNAs in pulmonary fibroblasts. This study utilized RNA-seq data meta-analysis to explore the regulatory network of hub long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) in IPF fibroblasts. The meta-analysis unveiled 584 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNA) and 75 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNA) in lung fibroblasts from IPF. Among these, BCL6, EFNB1, EPHB2, FOXO1, FOXO3, GNAI1, IRF4, PIK3R1, and RXRA were identified as hub mRNAs, while AC008708.1, AC091806.1, AL442071.1, FAM111A-DT, and LINC01989 were designated as hub lncRNAs. Functional characterization revealed involvement in TGF-β, PI3K, FOXO, and MAPK signaling pathways. Additionally, this study identified regulatory interactions between sequences of hub mRNAs and lncRNAs. In summary, the findings suggest that AC008708.1, AC091806.1, FAM111A-DT, LINC01989, and AL442071.1 lncRNAs can regulate BCL6, EFNB1, EPHB2, FOXO1, FOXO3, GNAI1, IRF4, PIK3R1, and RXRA mRNAs in fibroblasts bearing IPF and contribute to fibrosis by modulating crucial signaling pathways such as FoxO signaling, chemical carcinogenesis, longevity regulatory pathways, non-small cell lung cancer, and AMPK signaling pathways.