Long noncoding RNA GAS5 acts as a competitive endogenous RNA to regulate GSK-3β and PTEN expression by sponging miR-23b-3p in Alzheimer's disease
Li Zeng
Kaiyue Zhao
Jianghong Liu
Mimin Liu
Zhongdi Cai
Ting Sun
Zhuorong Li
Rui Liu
Abstract：Long noncoding RNA and microRNA are regulatory noncoding RNAs that are implicated in Alzheimer's disease, but the role of long noncoding RNA-associated competitive endogenous RNA has not been fully elucidated. The long noncoding RNA growth arrest-specific 5 (GAS5) is a member of the 5'-terminal oligopyrimidine gene family that may be involved in neurological disorders, but its role in Alzheimer's disease remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the function of GAS5 and construct a GAS5-associated competitive endogenous RNA network comprising potential targets. RNA sequencing results showed that GAS5 was upregulated in five familial Alzheimer's disease (5xFAD) mice, APPswe/PSEN1dE9 (APP/PS1) mice, Alzheimer's disease-related APPswe cells, and serum from patients with Alzheimer's disease. Functional experiments with targeted overexpression and silencing demonstrated that GAS5 played a role in cognitive dysfunction and multiple Alzheimer's disease-associated pathologies, including tau hyperphosphorylation, amyloid-beta accumulation, and neuronal apoptosis. Mechanistic studies indicated that GAS5 acted as an endogenous sponge by competing for microRNA-23b-3p (miR-23b-3p) binding to regulate its targets glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK-3β) and phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) expression in an Argonaute 2-induced RNA silencing complex (RISC)-dependent manner. GAS5 inhibited miR-23b-3p-mediated GSK-3β and PTEN cascades with a feedforward PTEN/protein kinase B (Akt)/GSK-3β linkage. Furthermore, recovery of GAS5/miR-23b-3p/GSK-3β/PTEN pathways relieved Alzheimer's disease-like symptoms in vivo, indicated by the amelioration of spatial cognition, neuronal degeneration, amyloid-beta load, and tau phosphorylation. Together, these findings suggest that GAS5 promotes Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. This study establishes the functional convergence of the GAS5/miR-23b-3p/GSK-3β/PTEN pathway on multiple pathologies, suggesting a candidate therapeutic target in Alzheimer's disease.
Keywords：Alzheimer's diseaseamyloid-beta peptide accumulationcognitive dysfunctioncompetitive endogenous RNAglycogen synthase kinase 3betalncRNA growth arrest-specific 5microRNA-23b-3pneuronal apoptosisphosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome
Publication Date：2026-01-30
Online Publishing Date：2025-12-11(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：14( 392-405 )