A high-throughput screen identifies the long non-coding RNA DRAIC as a regulator of autophagy

Imke Tiessen, Marie H Abildgaard, Michal Lubas, Helene M Gylling, Cornelia Steinhauer, Elin J Pietras, Sven Diederichs, Lisa B Frankel, Anders H Lund

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

31 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Autophagy is a conserved degradation process that occurs in all eukaryotic cells and its dysfunction has been associated with various diseases including cancer. While a number of large-scale attempts have recently identified new molecular players in autophagy regulation, including proteins and microRNAs, little is known regarding the function of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the regulation of this process. To identify new long non-coding RNAs with functional implications in autophagy, we performed a high-throughput RNAi screen targeting more than 600 lncRNA transcripts and monitored their effects on autophagy in MCF-7 cells. We identified 63 lncRNAs that affected GFP-LC3B puncta numbers significantly. We validated the strongest hit, the lncRNA DRAIC previously shown to impact cell proliferation, and revealed a novel role for this lncRNA in the regulation of autophagic flux. Interestingly, we find DRAIC's pro-proliferative effects to be autophagy-independent. This study serves as a valuable resource for researchers from both the lncRNA and autophagy fields as it advances the current understanding of autophagy regulation by non-coding RNAs.

Original languageEnglish
JournalOncogene
Volume38
Issue number26
Pages (from-to)5127-5141
Number of pages15
ISSN0950-9232
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2019

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