Differential lncRNA expression profile and function analysis in primary Sjogren's syndrome

Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by abnormal immune cell activation. This study aimed to investigate differentially expressed long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in patients with pSS to identify lncRNAs that affect pSS pathogenesis. Transcriptome sequencing detected 38096 lncRNAs and 50869 mRNAs in PBMCs from patients with pSS and healthy individuals. The differentially expressed mRNAs underwent functional enrichment analysis. A protein interaction relationship (PPI) and ceRNA network was constructed. LncRNA expression in patients with pSS and controls was determined using RT-PCR. 1180 lncRNAs and 640 mRNAs were differentially expressed in pSS patients (fold change > 2 in healthy persons). The PPI network was constructed with 640 mRNAs and a ceRNA network with four key lncRNAs (GABPB1-AS1, PSMA3-AS1, LINC00847 and SNHG1). A co-expression relationship was found between GABPB1-AS1 and several upregulated mRNAs (IFI44, IFI44L, IFI6, and EPSTI1). RT-PCR revealed that GABPB1-AS1 and PSMA3-AS1 were significantly upregulated 3.0- and 1.4-fold in the pSS group, respectively. In patients with pSS, the GABPB1-AS1 expression level was positively correlated with B cell and IgG levels. GABPB1-AS1 expression levels are positively correlated with B cell levels and may be involved in the pathogenesis of pSS. Overall design: Transcriptome sequencing of PBMC from 4 pSS patients and 4 healthy controls