Unravelling the Potential Regulatory Role of Blood lncRNA on Swine Immunity

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are regulatory RNA molecules involved in numerous biological processes, including immune response. Although their functions remain difficult to characterize, lncRNAs have been associated with both productive and immune traits in pigs. Because immune parameters have been proposed as indicators of immunocompetence, studying lncRNA regulation in immune-related tissues may contribute to improving pig robustness and disease resistance. In this study, whole-blood RNA-seq data from 255 commercial 60-day-old Duroc pigs were used to identify lncRNA-associated immune mechanisms. Co-expression networks were constructed from highly correlated lncRNAs and other genes, followed by functional enrichment analyses. Associations between network genes and 15 immune-related phenotypes were evaluated, and putative RNA-RNA interactions were characterized. The largest network identified was enriched for immune pathways, particularly antiviral response, and included key transcription factors such as IRF7, STAT1, STAT2, and ZNFX1. Four genes within this network (ASAP3, ENSSSCG00000036342, RNF24, and P2RY13) were in silico predicted to interact with the same domain of lncRNA ENSSSCG00000055468. Additional networks were associated with V(D)J recombination, cytokine-mediated signalling, and other immune functions. A second putative RNA-RNA interaction was identified between lncRNA ENSSSCG00000058144 and RHEX. These findings reveal potential lncRNA-mediated regulatory mechanisms underlying porcine immunity and provide candidate RNA-RNA interactions that require future validation.