Abstract
Excessive oxidative stress causes neuronal cell injury. Long non-coding RNA (LncRNA) EPIC1 (Lnc-EPIC1) is a MYC-interacting LncRNA. Its expression and potential functions in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-stimulated neuronal cells are studied. In SH-SY5Y neuronal cells and primary human neuron cultures, H2O2 downregulated Lnc-EPIC1 and key MYC targets (Cyclin A1, CDC20 and CDC45). Ectopic overexpression of Lnc-EPIC1 increased expression of MYC targets and significantly attenuated H2O2-induced neuronal cell death and apoptosis. Contrarily, Lnc-EPIC1 siRNA potentiated neuronal cell death by H2O2. MYC knockout by CRISPR/Cas9 method also facilitated H2O2-induced SH-SY5Y cell death. Significantly, MYC knockout abolished Lnc-EPIC1-induced actions in H2O2-stimulated neuronal cells. Together, these results suggest that Lnc-EPIC1 downregulation mediates H2O2-induced neuronal cell death.