Circular RNA sequencing identified circARNTL2 as a pathogenic factor in psoriasis by facilitating proliferation and cell cycle progression of keratinocytes

Abstract

Psoriasis is a chronic recurrent skin disease, with excessive proliferation of keratinocytes. Recent studies indicated the pathogenic roles of circular RNA (circRNA) in psoriasis. Here, we screened the circRNA profiles from five psoriatic skin lesions and five normal skin tissues by circRNA sequencing and identified 1118 differentially expressed circRNAs (DECs) between psoriatic and normal groups. Among these DECs, high abundant circARNTL2 has been proven upregulated in psoriatic skin lesions by RT-qPCR assay. Then, the head-to-tail structure of circARNTL2 was validated by Sanger sequencing and RNase R digestion assay. Moreover, we determined cytoplastic location of circARNTL2 by RT-qPCR assay of nuclear/cytoplasmic RNA and FISH analysis. Further experiments demonstrated that silencing circARNTL2 expression could block cell proliferation and cell cycle progression of keratinocytes. Mechanistically, circARNTL2 can bind to and regulate Serpin B4 which also affects the proliferation of keratinocytes. These findings provide evidence for the role of circARNTL2 in psoriasis.