Detection of the long noncoding RNAs nuclear-enriched autosomal transcript 1 (NEAT1) and metastasis associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 in the peripheral blood of HIV-1-infected patients

Objectives Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in HIV-1 infection have not been extensively studied. Here we detected two lncRNAs, nuclear-enriched autosomal transcript 1 (NEAT1) and metastasis associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and plasma of HIV-1-infected patients. Methods Fifty-nine HIV-1-infected patients and 21 healthy controls were recruited for the study, of whom 31 patients were highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)-naive and 28 patients had been receiving HAART for more than 1 year with undetectable viral loads. Total RNA was extracted from PBMCs and plasma, and levels of NEAT1 and MALAT1 were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results We found that the levels of NEAT1 and MALAT1 in PBMCs were up-regulated in HAART-naive patients and were reduced in patients receiving HAART. NEAT1 was down-regulated in the plasma of infected patients and expression was correlated with CD4 T-cell count. Conclusions Our findings suggest that NEAT1 and MALAT1 may interact with HIV-1 in vivo and that the presence of NEAT1 in plasma is a potential biomarker of HIV-1 infection.