Integrated Genomics Reveals Convergent Transcriptomic Networks Underlying Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF RESPIRATORY AND CRITICAL CARE MEDICINE
Authors: Kusko, Rebecca L.; Brothers, John F., II; Tedrow, John; Pandit, Kusum; Huleihel, Luai; Perdomo, Catalina; Liu, Gang; Juan-Guardela, Brenda; Kass, Daniel; Zhang, Sherry; Lenburg, Marc; Martinez, Fernando; Quackenbush, John; Sciurba, Frank; Limper, Andrew; Geraci, Mark; Yang, Ivana; Schwartz, David A.; Beane, Jennifer; Spira, Avrum; Kaminski, Naftali
Abstract
Rationale: Despite shared environmental exposures, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are usually studied in isolation, and the presence of shared molecular mechanisms is unknown. Objectives: We applied an integrative genomic approach to identify convergent transcriptomic pathways in emphysema and IPF. Methods: We defined the transcriptional repertoire of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, IPF, or normal histology lungs using RNA-seq (n = 87). Measurements and Main Results: Genes increased in both emphysema and IPF relative to control were enriched for the p53/hypoxia pathway, a finding confirmed in an independent cohort using both gene expression arrays and the nCounter Analysis System (n = 193). Immunohistochemistry confirmed overexpression of HIFIA, MDM2, and NFKBIB members of this pathway in tissues from patients with emphysema or IPF. Using reads aligned across splice junctions, we determined that alternative splicing of p53/hypoxia pathway-associated molecules NUMB and PDGFA occurred more frequently in IPF or emphysema compared with control and validated these findings by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and the nCounter Analysis System on an independent sample set (n = 193). Finally, by integrating parallel microRNA and mRNA-Seq data on the same samples, we identified MIR96 as a key novel regulatory hub in the p53/hypoxia gene-expression network and confirmed that modulation of MIR96 in vitro recapitulates the disease-associated gene-expression network. Conclusions: Our results suggest convergent transcriptional regulatory hubs in diseases as varied phenotypically as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and IPF and suggest that these hubs may represent shared key responses of the lung to environmental stresses.
Long noncoding RNA LINC01578 drives colon cancer metastasis through a positive feedback loop with the NF-kappa B/YY1 axis
MOLECULAR ONCOLOGY
Authors: Liu, Jia; Zhan, Yang; Wang, Jiefu; Wang, Junfeng; Guo, Jiansheng; Kong, Dalu
Abstract
Metastasis accounts for poor prognosis of cancers and related deaths. Accumulating evidence has shown that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play critical roles in several types of cancer. However, which lncRNAs contribute to metastasis of colon cancer is still largely unknown. In this study, we found that lncRNA LINC01578 was correlated with metastasis and poor prognosis of colon cancer. LINC01578 was upregulated in colon cancer, associated with metastasis, advanced clinical stages, poor overall survival, disease-specific survival, and disease-free survival. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function assays revealed that LINC01578 enhanced colon cancer cell viability and mobility in vitro and colon cancer liver metastasis in vivo. Mechanistically, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) and Yin Yang 1 (YY1) directly bound to the LINC01578 promoter, enhanced its activity, and activated LINC01578 expression. LINC01578 was shown to be a chromatin-bound lncRNA, which directly bound NFKBIB promoter. Furthermore, LINC01578 interacted with and recruited EZH2 to NFKBIB promoter and further repressed NFKBIB expression, thereby activating NF-kappa B signaling. Through activation of NF-kappa B, LINC01578 further upregulated YY1 expression. Through activation of the NF-kappa B/YY1 axis, LINC01578 in turn enhanced its own promoter activity, suggesting that LINC01578 and NF-kappa B/YY1 formed a positive feedback loop. Blocking NF-kappa B signaling abolished the oncogenic roles of LINC01578 in colon cancer. Furthermore, the expression levels of LINC01578, NFKBIB, and YY1 were correlated in clinical tissues. Collectively, this study demonstrated that LINC01578 promoted colon cancer metastasis via forming a positive feedback loop with NF-kappa B/YY1 and suggested that LINC01578 represents a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for colon cancer metastasis.