miRNA let-7 family regulated by NEAT1 and ARID3A/NF-κB inhibits PRRSV-2 replication in vitro and in vivo

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is one of the most economically devastating diseases affecting the swine industry worldwide. To investigate the role of miRNAs in the infection and susceptibility of PRRS virus (PRRSV), twenty-four miRNA libraries were constructed and sequenced from PRRSV-infected and mock-infected Porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs) of Meishan, Landrace, Pietrain and Qingping pigs at 9 hours post infection (hpi), 36 hpi, and 60 hpi. The let-7 family miRNAs were significantly differentially expressed between PRRSV-infected and mock-infected PAMs from 4 pig breeds. The let-7 family miRNAs could significantly inhibit PRRSV-2 replication by directly targeting the 3’UTR of the PRRSV-2 genome and porcine IL6, which plays an important role in PRRSV replication and lung injury. NEAT1 acts as a competing endogenous lncRNA (ceRNA) to upregulate IL6 by attaching let-7 in PAMs. EMSA and ChIP results confirmed that ARID3A could bind to the promoter region of pri-let-7a/let-7f/let-7d gene cluster and inhibit the expression of the let-7 family. Moreover, the NF-κB signaling pathway inhibits the expression of the let-7 family by affecting the nuclear import of ARID3A. The pEGFP-N1-let-7 significantly reduced viral infections and pathological changes in PRRSV-infected piglets. Taken together, NEAT1/ARID3A/let-7/IL6 play significant roles in PRRSV-2 infection and may be promising therapeutic targets for PRRS.