Susceptibility to congenital heart defects associated with a polymorphism in TBX2 3' untranslated region in the Han Chinese population

Genetic Insights into Congenital Cardiac Septal Defects-A Narrative Review

Congenital heart diseases (CHDs) are a group of complex diseases characterized by structural and functional malformations during development in the human heart; they represent an important problem for public health worldwide. Within these malformations, septal defects such as ventricular (VSD) and atrial septal defects (ASD) are the most common forms of CHDs. Studies have reported that CHDs are the result of genetic and environmental factors. Here, we review and summarize the role of genetics involved in cardiogenesis and congenital cardiac septal defects. Moreover, treatment regarding these congenital cardiac septal defects is also addressed.

Long non-coding RNA SAP30-2:1 is downregulated in congenital heart disease and regulates cell proliferation by targeting HAND2

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common birth defect worldwide. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been implicated in many diseases. However, their involvement in CHD is not well understood. This study aimed to investigate the role of dysregulated lncRNAs in CHD. We used Gene Expression Omnibus data mining, bioinformatics analysis, and analysis of clinical tissue samples and observed that the novel lncRNA SAP30-2:1 with unknown function was significantly downregulated in damaged cardiac tissues from patients with CHD. Knockdown of lncRNA SAP30-2:1 inhibited the proliferation of human embryonic kidney and AC16 cells and decreased the expression of heart and neural crest derivatives expressed 2 (HAND2). Moreover, lncRNA SAP30-2:1 was associated with HAND2 by RNA immunoprecipitation. Overall, these results suggest that lncRNA SAP30-2:1 may be involved in heart development through affecting cell proliferation via targeting HAND2 and may thus represent a novel therapeutic target for CHD.

Hypermethylation-mediated down-regulation of lncRNA TBX5-AS1:2 in Tetralogy of Fallot inhibits cell proliferation by reducing TBX5 expression

Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is the most common complex congenital heart disease (CHD) with uncertain cause. Although long non‐coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been implicated in heart development and several CHDs, their role in TOF is not well understood. This study aimed to investigate how dysregulated lncRNAs contribute to TOF. Using Gene Expression Omnibus data mining, bioinformatics analysis and clinical heart tissue sample detecting, we identified a novel antisense lncRNA TBX5‐AS1:2 with unknown function that was significantly down‐regulated in injured cardiac tissues from TOF patients. LncRNA TBX5‐AS1:2 was mainly located in the nucleus of the human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293T) cells and formed an RNA‐RNA double‐stranded structure in the overlapping region with its sense mRNA T‐box transcription factor 5 (TBX5), which is an important regulator in heart development. Knock‐down of lncRNA TBX5‐AS1:2 via promoter hypermethylation reduced TBX5 expression at both the mRNA and protein levels by affecting its mRNA stability through RNA‐RNA interaction. Moreover, lncRNA TBX5‐AS1:2 knock‐down inhibited the proliferation of HEK293T cells. In conclusion, these results indicated that lncRNA TBX5‐AS1:2 may be involved in TOF by affecting cell proliferation by targeting TBX5.