LncRNA–miRNA–mRNA Regulatory Network Reveals Potential Immune Responses in Larval Tomato Hind (Cephalopholis sonnerati) Infected with RGNNV

Abstract

Simple Summary Cephalopholis sonnerati is an economically new aquaculture species in China. The red-spotted grouper nervous necrosis virus (RGNNV) exhibits high pathogenicity in larval C. sonnerati, but its immune response mechanisms remain unexplored, impeding the development of aquaculture. In the present study, we profiled brain transcriptome from healthy and naturally RGNNV-infected larvae. Many differentially expressed microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and fewer circular RNAs were identified. Enrichment analysis demonstrated that these targeted genes of differentially expressed ncRNAs were markedly enriched in innate immune defense, inflammatory, and cell death related pathways, such as JAK-STAT signaling pathway, NF-κB signaling pathway, apoptosis, and necroptosis. Furthermore, a lncRNA–miRNA–mRNA regulatory network focused on miR-93 was established, which may provide a valuable candidate target for future antiviral strategies in C. sonnerati. This study offers the first ncRNA transcriptome landscape of C. sonnerati during RGNNV infection, establishing a theoretical basis for elucidating host-RGNNV interaction mechanism in groupers.