PDX1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus: Importantly, lncRNA HI-LNC71 is located upstream of the pancreatic and duodenal homeobox 1 (PDX1) gene in an antisense orientation, and a knockdown of lncRNA HI-LNC71 in the mice reduced the expression of PDX1. Since PDX1 is the main regulator of pancreatic development and β-cell function, the loss of lncRNA HI-LNC71 may indeed cause disruption in pancreatic function and subsequently induce T2D [49].