Rs2262251 in lncRNA RP11-462G12.2 is associated with nonsyndromic cleft lip with/without cleft palate

Nonsyndromic cleft lip with/without cleft palate (NSCL/P) is one of the most common human congenital defects. Rs2262251 (G>C) in long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) RP11-462G12.2 is in high linkage disequilibrium with rs8049367, which was identified in our previous genome-wide association study on NSCL/P, and is a potential causative single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) for NSCL/P. To test these hypotheses, rs2262251 was evaluated in another cohort of 1,314 cases and 1,259 controls. Rs2262251 was associated with NSCL/P risk (p = .003). However, no association was detected for cleft palate only. SNP rs2262251 affected the structure and expression of lncRNA RP11-462G12.2 in HEK293 and HEPM cells and in lip tissues from patients with NSCL/P. Overexpression of the rs2262251 G allele contributed to reducing the number of cells in the G0/G1 phase, inhibiting cell apoptosis, and promoting cell proliferation in vitro. The rs2262251 C allele regulated the expression of miR-744-5p and its target gene IQSEC2, both of which were expressed in human lip tissues, and showed reverse correlation during mouse lip development. Taken together, these findings suggest that rs2262251 is associated with the risk of NSCL/P and participates in a lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory axis in which miR-744-5p and IQSEC2 combine to control NSCL/P development.