Page 85 - Annual report 2021-22

Annual Report 2021-22 |

Neeru Saini

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Neeru Saini’s lab studies long non-coding RNAs in adipose biology, osteogenesis and breast cancer.

Obesity is characterized as ‘metabolically healthy obesity', ‘metabolically benign obesity', or ‘insulin-
sensitive obesity' (ISO), and all these are being reported in approximately 10%-40% of obese people ,
including those with extreme obesity. The metabolic and cellular mechanism(s) linking adipocyte
biology to Insulin resistance are complex and are not fully understood. There is always a need for
discovering additional adipocyte-secreted products, which are central to insulin sensitivity and /or
resistance. The current project proposes to explore the contributions and mechanisms of action of
lncRNAs in adipose tissue function in insulin-sensitive (metabolically ˜healthy') and insulin-resistant,
(metabolically ˜unhealthy') phenotypes of obese and non-obese subjects. The present study will
deploy genome-wide transcriptomics using RNA sequencing to profile the transcriptome of the ADSCs.
The pathways related to adipogenesis that correlate the changes in these with the alterations in
differentiation potential, if any, between adipose derived hMSCs from lean and obese individuals.
Human Adipose Tissue samples are being collected from AIIMS and till now 9 samples have been
received. The tissue samples have been processed and their characterization by flow cytometry is in
process.
Identification and functional validation of noncoding RNA(s) related to osteogenesis using the
osteoblast-like cell line MG-63 using a combined computational and/or experimental approach is
another goal of Neeru Saini’s lab. Study of the miRNA-lncRNA interactions could lead to an improved
understanding of their crosstalk with related signalling pathways and factors related to osteogenesis.
A preferred strategy is the isolation and characterization of MSCs from human adipose tissue biopsies
/ lipoaspirates and investigation of the biological effect(s) of above identified noncoding RNA (s)
towards osteogenic differentiation potential of MSCs. Preliminary analysis of array data provided clues
of miR-365 playing a role in osteoblast-osteoclast formation and has great translational value. Wnt
signalling pathway in bone biology has gained considerable attention and this group is in the process
of functionally validating the role of miR-365 using bone osteosarcoma cell line(s). This miRNA was
previously identified in our laboratory as a regulator of the Wnt signaling pathway .
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death in India, partly due to inefficient prognosis
of CAD by the existing methods. There is a need for specific and cost-effective biomarkers for CAD
diagnostics/prognostics. Accumulating evidence suggests that circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) are
associated with CAD, but miRNA based biomarkers have not been extensively searched in the Indian
population. The aim of this project is to identify circulating miRNAs as potential prognostic and/or
diagnostic biomarkers for CAD. Blood samples from patients suffering from coronary artery disease
are being collected from AIIMS, New Delhi. Serum from 13 patients has been collected as of now.
Initial standardizations for blood based detection of miRNA in CAD blood samples has been completed.
A total of 60 CAD patients and 60 age and gender matched controls will be selected and miRNA
profiling analysis in plasma will be done and the results will be validated by qRT-PCR analysis. The
association study between the identified miRNAs and severity of CAD will be statistically evaluated.