Background and objectives: Sevoflurane (Sev) exposure may provoke deleterious effects on cognitive function. This study explores the mechanism of long non-coding RNA growth arrest specific transcript 5 (LncRNA GAS5) in Sev-induced cognitive dysfunction in neonatal rats.
Methods: Cognitive dysfunction was induced by Sev anesthesia in 7-day-old Sprague-Dawley rats, followed by open field test, novel object recognition, radial arm maze, and Morris water maze to evaluate cognitive function of rats. The subcellular localization of LncRNA GAS5 was detected by nucleocytoplasmic isolation assay, and the binding of miR-137 to LncRNA GAS5 and NKCC1 was detected by RNA pull down and dual-luciferase reporter assay, respectively. Adenovirus-packaged sh-LncRNA GAS5 was injected into the hippocampus of Sev rats. qRT-PCR and Western blot were performed to detect the expressions of LncRNA GAS5, miR-137 and NKCC1 in the hippocampus of rats.
Results: Sev anesthesia led to cognitive dysfunction in neonatal rats. LncRNA GAS5 was highly expressed in Sev rats, and inhibition of LncRNA GAS5 alleviated Sev-induced cognitive dysfunction in rats. LncRNA GAS5 targeted miR-137, and miR-137 inhibited NKCC1 expression. Knockdown of miR-137 or overexpression of NKCC1 reversed the effect of LncRNA GAS5 inhibition on cognitive dysfunction in sev rats.
Conclusion: LncRNA GAS5 promotes Sev-induced cognitive dysfunction in neonatal rats via the miR-137/NKCC1 axis.
Keywords: Cognitive dysfunction; LncRNA GAS5; Morris water maze; NKCC1; Neonatal rats; Radial arm maze; Sevoflurane; miR-137.
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