Screening for differentially expressed circRNAs in ischemic stroke by RNA sequencing

Background: Ischemic stroke is a disease with high rate of death and disability worldwide. This study investigated key circRNAs related to ischemic stroke. Methods: Three ischemic stroke patients and three healthy individuals were included in the current study to obtain the circRNA expression profiles by RNA sequencing. Through bioinformatic analysis, differentially expressed circRNAs (DEcircRNAs) were identified, and GO and pathway analyses for the host genes of DEcircRNAs were conducted. To further explore the functions of key circRNAs, a DEcircRNA-miRNA interaction network was constructed. Finally, the expression levels of selected circRNAs were validated with qRT-PCR. Results: A total of 736 DEcircRNAs were detected in ischemic stroke. Functional annotation of host genes of DEcircRNAs revealed several significantly enriched pathways, including Fc epsilon RI signaling pathway, B cell receptor signaling pathway, and T cell receptor signaling pathway. A circRNA-miRNA network, including 1544 circRNA-miRNA pairs, 456 circRNAs and 4 miRNAs, was obtained. The qRT-PCR results were largely in keeping with our RNA-seq data. Conclusion: The results of our study may help to elucidate the specific mechanism underlying ischemic stroke. Overall design: The cohort subjected to RNA-Seq consisted 3 ischemic stroke patients and 3 healthy individuals.