Objective: Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), a class of noncoding RNA larger than 200 nucleotides, constitute a heterogenic class of regulatory RNAs that includes, for example, intergenic lncRNAs, antisense transcripts, and enhancer RNAs. Due to their ability to modulate miR/mRNA networks and chromatin structure their therapeutic potential is extremely vast thus opening the opportunity for the development of new treatment strategies to be used in cardiovascular medicine. Recent studies indicate that altered expression and function of lncRNAs have also an important role in the development and progression of aortic valve stenosis (AS) and AS-induced cardiac hypertrophy. However, our knowledge of lncRNAs differentially expressed in stenotic aortic valves or during AS-induced cardiac fibrosis and remodelling is still limited on a few examples and as such, requires further investigation. (1)

Methods: We performed bioinformatic reanalysis of published microarray expressional studies of stenotic and control human aortic valves tissue samples. Data are analyzed using the online Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) v6.8.

Results: In addition to lncRNA MALAT1 and H19 with known role in the osteogenic transdifferentiation of valvular interstitial cells during the process of aortic valve calcification bioinformatic analysis revealed several previously unrecognized intergenic, intronic and antisense lncRNAs and lncRNA relate miRNA host genes that are differentially expressed in aortic valve tissue of AS patients compared to control valves (Figure 1).

Conclusion: Bioinformatic data mining of gene expression microarray data combined with upgraded annotation of the human genome landscape provides a useful tool for revealing many previously unrecognized lncRNA transcripts implicated in the pathogenesis of AS.