Regulation of Neuroregeneration by Long Noncoding RNAs

In mammals, neurons in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) have regenerative capacity following injury, but it is generally absent in the CNS. This difference is attributed, at least in part, to the intrinsic ability of PNS neurons to activate a unique regenerative transcriptional program following injury. Here, we profiled gene expression following sciatic nerve crush in mice and identified long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) that act in the regenerating neurons and which are typically not expressed in other contexts. We show that two of these lncRNAs regulate the extent of neuronal outgrowth. We then focus on one of these, Silc1, and show that it regulates neuro-regeneration in cultured cells and in vivo, through cis-acting activation of the transcription factor Sox11.