lncRNA expression profiles from murine BALB/c macrophages at the extremes of the M(LPS+IFN-γ) and M(IL-4) polarized phenotypes

Macrophages possess the hallmark feature of plasticity, allowing them to undergo a dynamic transition between M(LPS+IFN-γ) and M(IL-4) polarized phenotypes. The aim of the present study was to screen for differentially lncRNAs that were associated with macrophage polarization. The lncRNA profiles of three M(LPS+IFN-γ) and three M(IL-4) samples were obtained using microarray analysis. Based on the threshold of fold-change >2.0 and a p-value < 0.05, we screened a total of 1,251 lncRNAs, of which 627 were upregulated and 624 downregulated in M(LPS+IFN-γ) macrophages compared to that in M(IL-4) macrophages.This study provides new insights into the role of genes in macrophage differentiation and polarization. Total RNA was prepared from bone marrow-derived macrophages of wild-type BALB/c mice treated in M(LPS+IFN-γ) or M(IL-4) conditions (n=3 replicates per condition originating from different mice)