Long Non-Coding RNA BCYRN1 Drives Cellular Processes to Promote Asthma Development

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Asthma is a common chronic inflammatory respiratory disease worldwide. The long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) <i>BCYRN1</i> has been shown to function in the inhibition of smooth muscle cell differentiation and vascular development, but its function and potential molecular mechanisms of lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> in bronchial smooth muscle cells (BSMCs) in asthma remain unknown. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was performed to detect the expression level of lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> in blood and sputum of asthma patients. The effects of lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> on the proliferation and migration of BSMCs were explored by cell counting kit-8, Transwell, colony formation, and flow cytometry analysis. Differentially expressed genes between lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> overexpression and knockdown cells were identified using RNA-seq and verified using RT-qPCR. <b><i>Results:</i></b> LncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> was upregulated in asthma patients. Overexpression of lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> significantly promoted the proliferation and migration of BSMCs, inhibited cell apoptosis and affected cell cycle arrest, promoting DNA replication. These effects were reversed after lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> inhibition. RNA-seq identified 434 common differentially expressed genes in the lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> overexpression and knockdown groups and verified their expression levels by RT-qPCR. Gene ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and Gene set enrichment analysis indicated that these genes were mainly involved in external stimulus, cell cycle, growth factor activity, cytokine interactions, and inflammatory response. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> The identification of the highly expressed lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> in patients with asthma, combined with functional experiments and transcriptional data, suggests that lncRNA <i>BCYRN1</i> can mediate the development of asthma and can be used as a promising diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for asthma.