The role of lncRNA in the differentiation of adipose-derived stem cells: from functions to mechanism.

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) have become one of the best seed cells widely studied and concerned in tissue engineering because of their rich sources and excellent multi-directional differentiation ability, which are expected to play a practical application role in tissue defect, osteoporosis, plastic surgery, and other fields. However, the differentiation direction of ADSCs is regulated by complex factors. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are RNA molecules longer than 500 nucleotides that do not encode proteins and can act as signaling RNAs in response to intracellular and extracellular stimuli. Recently, accumulating evidence has revealed that lncRNAs could regulate the cell cycle and differentiation direction of ADSCs through various mechanisms, including histone modification, binding to RNA-binding proteins, and regulating the expression of miRNAs. Therefore, enriching and elucidating its mechanism of action as well as targeting lncRNAs to regulate ADSCs differentiation have potential prospects in tissue regeneration applications such as bone, blood vessels, and adipose. In this review, we summarize the role and mechanism of lncRNAs and its complexes in the multi-directional differentiation of ADSCs and discuss some potential approaches that can exert therapeutic effects on tissue defects by modulating the expression level of lncRNAs in ADSCs. Our work might provide some new research directions for the clinical applications of tissue engineering.