Comprehensive analysis of circRNA expression profiles and circRNA‐associated competing endogenous RNA networks in the development of mouse thymus

The thymus plays an irreplaceable role as a primary lymphoid organ. However, the complicate processes of its development and involution are incompletely understood. Accumulating evidence indicates that non‐coding RNAs play key roles in the regulation of biological development. At present, the studies of the circRNA profiles and of circRNA‐associated competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) in the thymus are still scarce. Here, deep‐RNA sequencing was used to study the biological mechanisms underlying the development process (from 2‐week‐old to 6‐week‐old) and the recession process (from 6‐week‐old to 3‐month‐old) of the mouse thymus. It was found that 196 circRNAs, 233 miRNAs and 3807 mRNAs were significantly dysregulated. The circRNA‐associated ceRNA networks were constructed in the mouse thymus, which were mainly involved in early embryonic development and the proliferation and division of T cells. Taken together, these results elucidated the regulatory roles of ceRNAs in the development and involution processes of the mouse thymus.