LncRNA H19 improves angiogenesis in mouse pulmonary artery endothelial cells by regulating the HIF-1α/VEGF signaling pathway

Persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) is a syndrome of acute respiratory failure characterized by systemic hypoxemia and elevated pulmonary arterial pressure, which leads to pathological changes in pulmonary vascular remodeling and endothelial cell function. Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) H19 has been shown to be involved in the regulation of arterial endothelial cell function, but its regulatory role in PHN is not fully understood. In the present study, mouse pulmonary artery endothelial cells (MPAECs) were cultured in a hypoxic environment. Subsequently, the regulatory function of lncRNA H19 on MPAECs was explored by constructing adenoviruses knocking down and overexpressing lncRNA H19. The results revealed that the hypoxic environment could induce the proliferation and migration of MPAECs, as well as the high expression of lncRNA H19 in MPAECs. Knockdown of lncRNA H19 expression in MPAECs reversed hypoxic environment-induced functional changes in endothelial cells, whereas overexpression of lncRNA H19 further enhanced the proliferation and migration of MPAECs. In addition, further assays revealed that lncRNA H19 upregulated the hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α)/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway through sponge adsorption of microRNA-20a-5p, which in turn promoted changes in endothelial cell function. LncRNA H19 may interfere with vascular remodeling in hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension by upregulating the expression of HIF-1α and VEGF in vascular endothelial cells.