Regarding LINC00657 (NORAD), our results are in line with a study which found that LINC00657, which is expressed in vascular endothelial cells, induced angiogenesis during atherosclerosis through the upregulation of VEGF, MMP-2, and MMP-9 (Wan et al., 2020). The gene discussed is MMP9; the disease is atherosclerosis.