Lnc‐Pim1 Promotes Neurite Outgrowth and Regeneration of Neuron‐Like Cells Following ACR‐Induced Neuronal Injury

ABSTRACT Decreased regenerative capacity of central nervous system neurons is the main cause for failure of damaged neuron regeneration and functional recovery. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are abundant in mammalian transcriptomes, and many time‐ and tissue‐specific lncRNAs are thought to be closely related to specific biological functions. The promoting effect of Pim‐1 gene on neural differentiation and regeneration has been documented, but the effect and mechanism of its neighbor gene Lnc‐Pim1 in regulating the response of central neurons to injury remain unclear. RT‐PCR in this study demonstrated that the expression of Lnc‐Pim1 was upregulated in acrylamide (ACR)‐induced neuronal injury. FISH and nucleus‐cytoplasmic assay demonstrated that Lnc‐Pim1 was mainly expressed in the neuron cytoplasm, with a small amount in the nucleus. Western blot analysis proved that Lnc‐Pim1 overexpression induced by the lentivirus vector could promote neurite outgrowth in Neuro‐2a cells by activating the Erk1/2 signal pathway, and improve neurite regeneration of injured neurons by upregulating GAP‐43 and β‐Ⅲ tubulin protein expression. However, silencing Lnc‐Pim1 expression by interfering RNA could effectively downregulate the GAP‐43 and β‐Ⅲ tubulin protein expression, and inhibit neurite growth of neurons. In addition, CHIRP‐MS was performed to identify several potential targets of Lnc‐Pim1 involved in the regulation of neurite regeneration of injured neurons. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that Lnc‐Pim1 is a potential lnc‐RNA, playing an important role in regulating central nerve regeneration.