The leukocyte non-coding RNA landscape in critically ill patients with sepsis

Here, we obtained whole blood from 156 patients with sepsis and 82 healthy subjects among whom eight were challenged with lipopolysaccharide in a clinically controlled setting (human endotoxemia). Via next-generation microarray analysis of leukocyte RNA we found long non-coding RNA and, to a lesser extent small non-coding RNA, were significantly altered in sepsis relative to health. Long non-coding RNA expression, but not small non-coding RNA, were largely recapitulated in human endotoxemia. Integrating RNA profiles and plasma protein levels revealed known as well as previously unobserved pathways, including non-sensory olfactory receptor activity. We provide a benchmark dissection of the blood leukocyte ‘regulome’ that can facilitate prioritization of future functional studies.