Analyses of lncRNA and mRNA profiles in recurrent atrial fibrillation after catheter ablation.

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia worldwide. Catheter ablation has become a crucial treatment for AF. However, there is a possibility of atrial fibrillation recurrence after catheter ablation. Our study sought to elucidate the role of lncRNA‒mRNA regulatory networks in late AF recurrence after catheter ablation. METHODS: We conducted RNA sequencing to profile the transcriptomes of 5 samples from the presence of recurrence after AF ablation (P-RAF) and 5 samples from the absence of recurrence after AF ablation (A-RAF). Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and long noncoding RNAs (DE-lncRNAs) were analyzed using the DESeq2 R package. The functional correlations of the DEGs were assessed through Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses. A protein‒protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using STRING and Cytoscape. We also established a lncRNA‒mRNA regulatory network between DE-lncRNAs and DEGs using BEDTools v2.1.2 software and the Pearson correlation coefficient method. To validate the high-throughput sequencing results of the hub genes, we conducted quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‒PCR) experiments. RESULTS: A total of 28,528 mRNAs and 42,333 lncRNAs were detected. A total of 96 DEGs and 203 DE-lncRNAs were identified between the two groups. GO analysis revealed that the DEGs were enriched in the biological processes (BPs) of "regulation of immune response" and "regulation of immune system process", the cellular components (CCs) of "extracellular matrix" and "cell‒cell junction", and the molecular functions (MFs) of "signaling adaptor activity" and "protein-macromolecule adaptor activity". According to the KEGG analysis, the DEGs were associated with the "PI3K-Akt signaling pathway" and "MAPK signaling pathway." Nine hub genes (MMP9, IGF2, FGFR1, HSPG2, GZMB, PEG10, GNLY, COL6A1, and KCNE3) were identified through the PPI network. lncRNA-TMEM51-AS1-201 was identified as a core regulator in the lncRNA‒mRNA regulatory network, suggesting its potential impact on the recurrence of AF after catheter ablation through the regulation of COL6A1, FGFR1, HSPG2, and IGF2. CONCLUSIONS: The recurrence of atrial fibrillation after catheter ablation may be associated with immune responses and fibrosis, with the extracellular matrix playing a crucial role. TMEM51-AS1-201 has been identified as a potential key target for AF recurrence after catheter ablation.

Influencing Mechanism of Large-dose of Atorvastatin in Serum Visfatin, MMP-9, and Blood Fat Levels of Patients with Acute Coronary Syndromes.

The research was conducted to analyze the clinical effects and corresponding molecular mechanisms of short-term treatment of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) by different doses of atorvastatin. In the research, a total of 90 ACS patients were included as the samples and divided into an experimental group (conventional treatment+60mg/per time/late atorvastatin), control group 1 (conventional treatment+25mg/per time/late atorvastatin), and control group 2 (25mg/per time/late atorvastatin) according to different doses of atorvastatin. After that, their blood fat and inflammatory factors before and after treatment were analyzed. Total cholesterol (TC) and high-density liptein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels of the experimental group were inferior to those of control groups 1 and 2 in the 5th and 7th days (P<0.05). After treatment, visfatin, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) of patients in the experimental group and control groups 1 and 2 were notably inferior to those in control groups 1 and 2 (P<0.05). Besides, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) of patients in the experimental group and control groups 1 and 2 were inferior to those in control groups 1 and 2 after treatment (P<0.05). Based on the above results, the short-term treatment by large-dose atorvastatin could reduce blood far and inflammatory factor levels of ACS patients more effectively than by conventional dose, and further inhibit inflammatory reactions and improve patient prognosis with safety and feasibility.