Association of long non-coding RNA in lipid metabolism: Implications in leukemia

Cancer has high mortality rate and occupies second position among major diseases. Despite extensive research and therapies, in every nook and corner of the world, death rate is increasing exponentially. Hallmarks of cancer are benchmarks of cancer cells describing the fundamental principle and capabilities of the cells transforming from normal to malignant tumour. One of the major ones among them is the deregulation of cellular metabolism or metabolic reprogramming, involving alterations in glucose and lipid metabolism. Progressive research in this area has visualized the vital role of lncRNAs in lipid metabolism with respect to AML. lncRNAs involve in various cellular processes and also contribute for significant functions of the cell like chromatin remodelling, transcriptional activation and repression, gene regulation, immune response, cell differentiation, and cell cycle regulation, in addition to oncogenic processes such as proliferation, angiogenesis, migration, and apoptosis. Structural similarities are observed among mRNAs and lncRNAs in terms of poly A-tail and 5' cap however protein-coding regions are lacking. A large body of evidence has shown that lncRNAs directly or indirectly mediate lipid metabolism by activating downstream genes. Considering their potential involvement in leukemia, these lncRNAs can be explored and considered as biomarkers for therapeutics, prognosis, and diagnosis. The present review is planned to summarize the functional classification of lncRNAs, the role of lipid metabolism in cancer, different lncRNAs involved in leukemia, and different cancer types related to lipid metabolism.