Fig. 1

MRF is upregulated in MSCs during coculture with CD14+ monocytes. A Heatmap of differentially expressed lncRNAs (≥ two-fold) in MSCs between cells cocultured with or without CD14+ monocytes. B Volcano plots of lncRNA high-throughput sequencing results for MSCs compared between coculture with or without CD14+ monocytes. C Dynamic expression of MRF at different time points during coculture, as measured by qRT–PCR (n = 3). D DNA gel electrophoresis of RACE products: 5′-1,5′-RACE PCR; 5′-2,5′-RACE nested PCR; 3′-1,3′-RACE PCR; 3′-2,3′-RACE nested PCR. The red arrows indicate the correct fragments produced by RACE. E Schematic annotation of MRF in the genome. F Percentages of cytoplasmic and nuclear RNA in MSCs assessed by qRT–PCR after cytoplasmic and nuclear fractionation. U6 and MALAT1 represent nuclear RNA, and GAPDH and ACTB represent cytoplasmic RNA (n = 3). G GO analysis of genes coexpressed with MRF using the AnnoLnc2 database. The data are presented as the mean ± SD; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ns not significant. All experiments were repeated independently three times