Short-lived long non-coding RNAs as surrogate indicators for chemical exposure and LINC00152 and MALAT1 modulate their neighboring genes

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 12; no. 7; p. e0181628
• Main Authors: Tani, Hidenori, Okuda, Sayaka, Nakamura, Kaoru, Aoki, Motohide, Umemura, Tomonari
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 18.07.2017; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Biology and life sciences; Cell adhesion & migration; Cell cycle; Cell Differentiation - drug effects; Cell Differentiation - genetics; Cell division; Cell Line; Chemical synthesis; Chemicals; Chloride; Coding; Environmental Pollutants - pharmacology; Fibroblasts; Gastric cancer; Gene expression; Genes; Genetic research; Genomes; Heavy metals; HeLa Cells; Humans; Indicators; Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells - cytology; Kinases; Life sciences; Liver cancer; Metastasis; Neural stem cells; Neural Stem Cells - cytology; Neural Stem Cells - drug effects; Neural Stem Cells - metabolism; Oxidative stress; Pharmacy; Physical Sciences; Physiology; Pluripotency; Protein biosynthesis; Protein synthesis; Proteins; Research and analysis methods; RNA polymerase; RNA Stability - drug effects; RNA Stability - genetics; RNA, Long Noncoding - metabolism; RNA, Messenger - genetics; RNA, Messenger - metabolism; Slits; Stem cells; Stomach cancer; Time Factors; Transcription, Genetic - drug effects; Japan
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0181628

Whole transcriptome analyses have revealed a large number of novel long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). Although accumulating evidence demonstrates that lncRNAs play important roles in regulating gene expression, the detailed mechanisms of action of most lncRNAs remain unclear. We previously reported that a novel class of lncRNAs with a short half-life (t1/2 < 4 h) in HeLa cells, termed short-lived non-coding transcripts (SLiTs), are closely associated with physiological and pathological functions. In this study, we focused on 26 SLiTs and nuclear-enriched abundant lncRNA, MALAT1(t1/2 of 7.6 h in HeLa cells) in neural stem cells (NSCs) derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells, and identified four SLiTs (TUG1, GAS5, FAM222-AS1, and SNHG15) that were affected by the following typical chemical stresses (oxidative stress, heavy metal stress and protein synthesis stress). We also found the expression levels of LINC00152 (t1/2 of 2.1 h in NSCs), MALAT1 (t1/2 of 1.8 h in NSCs), and their neighboring genes were elevated proportionally to the chemical doses. Moreover, we confirmed that the overexpression of LINC00152 or MALAT1 upregulated the expressions of their neighboring genes even in the absence of chemical stress. These results reveal that LINC00152 and MALAT1 modulate their neighboring genes, and thus provide a deeper understanding of the functions of lncRNAs.