Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Jul 12;12(14):1832.
doi: 10.3390/cells12141832.

LncRNAs as Regulators of Atherosclerotic Plaque Stability

Aleksa Petkovic  1 , Sanja Erceg  2 , Jelena Munjas  2 , Ana Ninic  2 , Sandra Vladimirov  2 , Aleksandar Davidovic  3   4 , Luka Vukmirovic  3 , Marko Milanov  3 , Dane Cvijanovic  3 , Tijana Mitic  5 , Miron Sopic  2
Affiliations
Review

LncRNAs as Regulators of Atherosclerotic Plaque Stability

Aleksa Petkovic et al. Cells. .

Abstract

Current clinical data show that, despite constant efforts to develop novel therapies and clinical approaches, atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (ASCVD) are still one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Advanced and unstable atherosclerotic plaques most often trigger acute coronary events that can lead to fatal outcomes. However, despite the fact that different plaque phenotypes may require different treatments, current approaches to prognosis, diagnosis, and classification of acute coronary syndrome do not consider the diversity of plaque phenotypes. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) represent an important class of molecules that are implicated in epigenetic control of numerous cellular processes. Here we review the latest knowledge about lncRNAs' influence on plaque development and stability through regulation of immune response, lipid metabolism, extracellular matrix remodelling, endothelial cell function, and vascular smooth muscle function, with special emphasis on pro-atherogenic and anti-atherogenic lncRNA functions. In addition, we present current challenges in the research of lncRNAs' role in atherosclerosis and translation of the findings from animal models to humans. Finally, we present the directions for future lncRNA-oriented research, which may ultimately result in patient-oriented therapeutic strategies for ASCVD.

Keywords: atherosclerosis; long non-coding RNAs; plaque stability.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Processes implicated in plaque development and destabilization regulated by lncRNAs (created with Biorender).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Challenges and perspectives of lncRNA translational research in ASCVD (created with Biorender).
Figure 3
Figure 3
The distribution of lncRNAs related to plaque stability in human vasculature based on the data from Tabula Sapiens consortium. The colour intensity in the figure represents the varying levels of gene expression, with darker colours indicating higher expression. Additionally, the size of the circles in the figure corresponds to the percentage of cells within a specific cell type expressing the transcript of interest.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Roth G.A., Mensah G.A., Johnson C.O., Addolorato G., Ammirati E., Baddour L.M., Barengo N.C., Beaton A.Z., Benjamin E.J., Benziger C.P. Global burden of cardiovascular diseases and risk factors, 1990–2019: Update from the GBD 2019 study. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 2020;76:2982–3021. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2020.11.010. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tsao C.W., Aday A.W., Almarzooq Z.I., Anderson C.A., Arora P., Avery C.L., Baker-Smith C.M., Beaton A.Z., Boehme A.K., Buxton A.E. Heart disease and stroke statistics—2023 update: A report from the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2023;147:e93–e621. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001123. - DOI - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization. Fact Sheets: Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs) [(accessed on 28 March 2023)]. Available online: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases...
    1. Timmis A., Townsend N., Gale C., Grobbee R., Maniadakis N., Flather M., Wilkins E., Wright L., Vos R., Bax J., et al. European Society of Cardiology: Cardiovascular disease statistics 2017. Eur. Heart J. 2018;39:508–579. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehx628. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Falk E., Nakano M., Bentzon J.F., Finn A.V., Virmani R. Update on acute coronary syndromes: The pathologists’ view. Eur. Heart J. 2013;34:719–728. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehs411. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances