sncRNA sequencing of eight different tiusses in hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension (HPH) rat model

Hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension (HPH) is a lethal cardiovascular disease that affects the pulmonary circulation. It is characterized by an increase in pulmonary arterial pressure, leading to right ventricular dysfunction and eventual heart failure. HPH can be caused by a variety of underlying conditions, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial lung disease, and obstructive sleep apnea, which all share a common feature of hypoxia. Small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) have recently gained significant attention for their potential functions in cellular regulation during the progression of hypoxia. Characterizing the changes in gene expression under hypoxic conditions can help to understand the pathogenesis and mechanisms of HPH and identify potential therapeutic targets. However, studies on the expression of sncRNAs in HPH model are limited. To address this issue, we analyzed the effect of hypoxia on the sncRNA profiles in eight different tissues of adult male HPH rats using high-throughput sequencing. This study identified various novel sncRNAs, with the brain, kidney, and spleen having the largest number of microRNA (miRNA), tRNA-derived small RNA (tDR) and small nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) respectively. Moreover, this study found multiple tissue-specific and hypoxia-responsive sncRNAs especially miRNAs and tDRs. Arm switching was observed for several miRNAs under hypoxia, and the proportion of 5 tR-halves in total tDRs was found to significantly increase under hypoxia. Overall, the study generated a comprehensive characterization of the sncRNA profiles in HPH rats, and this could have implications for the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for HPH and diseases associated with hypoxia.