TUG1 promotes prostate cancer progression by acting as a ceRNA of miR-26a.
Yang Bin,Tang Xiaodi,Wang Zhixin,Sun Daju,Wei Xin,Ding Youpeng
Bioscience reports
Previous studies have demonstrated that taurine-upregulated gene 1 (TUG1) was aberrantly expressed and involved in multiple types of cancer; however, the expression profile and potential role of TUG1 in prostate cancer (PCa) remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the expression and function of TUG1 in PCa. In the present study, we analyzed TUG1 expression levels of PCa patients in tumor and adjacent normal tissue by real-time quantitative PCR. Knockdown of TUG1 by RNAi was performed to explore its roles in cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. Here we report, for the first time, that TUG1 promotes tumor cell migration, invasion, and proliferation in PCa by working in key aspects of biological behaviors. TUG1 could negatively regulate the expression of miR-26a in PCa cells. The bioinformatics prediction revealed putative miR-26a-binding sites within TUG1 transcripts. In conclusion, our study suggests that long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) TUG1 acts as a functional oncogene in PCa development.
10.1042/BSR20180677
Competing endogenous RNA interplay in cancer: mechanism, methodology, and perspectives.
Cheng Dong-Liang,Xiang Yuan-Yuan,Ji Li-juan,Lu Xiao-Jie
Tumour biology : the journal of the International Society for Oncodevelopmental Biology and Medicine
Competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) refer to RNA transcripts, such as mRNAs, non-coding RNAs, pseudogene transcripts, and circular RNAs, that can regulate each other by competing for the same pool of miRNAs. ceRNAs involve in the pathogenesis of several common cancers such as prostate cancer, liver cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, gastric cancer, endometrial cancer, and so on. ceRNA activity is determined by factors such as miRNA/ceRNA abundance, ceRNAs binding affinity to miRNAs, RNA editing, and RNA-binding proteins. The alteration of any of these factors may lead to ceRNA network imbalance and thus contribute to cancer initiation and progression. There are generally three steps in ceRNA research conductions: ceRNA prediction, ceRNA validation, and ceRNA functional investigation. Deciphering ceRNA interplay in cancer provides new insight into cancer pathogenesis and opportunities for therapy exploration. In this review, we try to give readers a concise and reliable illustration on the mechanism, functions, research approaches, and perspective of ceRNA in cancer.
10.1007/s13277-015-3093-z
Circular RNA PVT1 promotes the invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of breast cancer cells through serving as a competing endogenous RNA for miR-204-5p.
OncoTargets and therapy
PURPOSE:Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a class of covalently closed circular RNA transcripts and have been found to regulate the progression of human malignancies. The objective of this study was to identify the functions of circRNAs in breast cancer (BCa). PATIENTS AND METHODS:BCa and adjacent non-cancerous tissues were collected from 99 patients. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to analyze the relationship between circPVT1 and prognosis. CircPVT1 expression levels in BCa tissues and cell lines were detected via PCR. Transfection technology was used to silence circPVT1 and overexpress miR-204-5p. Cell biological behavior was analyzed, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) related proteins were detected by Western blot. In vivo experiments were performed with the subcutaneous xenograft tumor model. RESULTS:CircPVT1 was markedly overexpressed in BCa tissues and cell lines. Higher expression of circPVT1 was correlated with poor prognosis of BCa patients. Knockdown circPVT1 significantly suppressed the proliferation, migration and invasion of BCa cells invitro, and suppressed BCa tumor growth invivo. CircPVT1 knockdown upregulated E-cadherin and downregulated N-cadherin, Vimentin, Slug and Twist in BCa cells. Moreover, circPVT1 could serve as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-204-5p, and restoration of miR-204-5p abrogated the oncogenic role of circPVT1 in BCa cells. CONCLUSION:CircPVT1 as a potentially valuable biomarker for BCa diagnosis and therapeutic target for BCa treatment. CircPVT1 might promote the invasion and EMT of BCa cells by serving as aceRNA for miR-204-5p.
10.2147/OTT.S180850
CXCR4 3'UTR functions as a ceRNA in promoting metastasis, proliferation and survival of MCF-7 cells by regulating miR-146a activity.
Zheng Tianjing,Chou Jinjiang,Zhang Feng,Liu Yu,Ni Haiwei,Li Xiaoman,Zheng Lufeng,Tang Tingting,Jin Liang,Xi Tao
European journal of cell biology
CXCR4 is the most common chemokine receptor expressed on tumor cells, and it is closely correlated with cancer cell stemness. This study was carried out to explore whether CXCR4 could function as a competitive endogenous RNA to promote metastasis, proliferation and survival in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. We validated that CXCR4, together with TRAF6 and EGFR, was directly targeted by miR-146a in MCF-7 cells. Overexpression of CXCR4 3'UTR inhibited the activity of miR-146a, thus elevating the expression of CXCR4, TRAF6 and EGFR. These oncoproteins further activated NF-κB pathway and promoted the proliferation, migration, invasion and anti-apoptotic activity of MCF-7 cells. Collectively, our study provided new insights into the function of CXCR4 in breast cancer: it promotes tumor progression as both a protein-coding gene and a non-coding RNA, complicating the mechanism by which oncogenes promote tumor progression.
10.1016/j.ejcb.2015.05.010
Circular RNA ciRS-7 Maintains Metastatic Phenotypes as a ceRNA of miR-1299 to Target MMPs.
Sang Meixiang,Meng Lingjiao,Liu Sihua,Ding Pingan,Chang Sheng,Ju Yingchao,Liu Fei,Gu Lina,Lian Yishui,Geng Cuizhi
Molecular cancer research : MCR
Circular RNA ciRS-7 has been reported to act as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) of the miRNA miR-7, resulting in reduced miR-7 activity and increased miR-7-targeted transcripts. However, it is unknown if ciRS-7 harbors other miRNAs with regulatory roles in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). The present study determined that the expression of ciRS-7 in TNBC clinical specimens and representative cells is significantly higher than other breast cancer subtypes. Functionally, downregulation of ciRS-7 inhibited cell migration and invasion of TNBC cells. Knockdown of ciRS-7 expression also inhibited the liver and lung metastasis of TNBC cells Mechanistic studies revealed that ciRS-7 contains 20 miR-1299-binding sites and functions as a ceRNA of miR-1299 in TNBC cells. High expression of ciRS-7 maintains the high migration and invasion properties of TNBC cells by acting as a ceRNA of miR-1299 to enhance the expression of matrix metalloproteinases family members (MMP). Circular RNA ciRS-7 is highly expressed in TNBC tumor specimens and cells, and its downregulation inhibits cell migration and invasion of TNBC cells and In addition, ciRS-7 functions as a ceRNA of miR-1299 to enhance the expression of MMPs, which maintains the high migration and invasion properties of TNBC cells. .
10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-18-0284
The circRNA circAGFG1 acts as a sponge of miR-195-5p to promote triple-negative breast cancer progression through regulating CCNE1 expression.
Molecular cancer
BACKGROUND:In recent years, circular RNAs (circRNAs), a new star of non-coding RNA, have been emerged as vital regulators and gained much attention for involvement of initiation and progression of diverse kinds of human diseases, especially cancer. However, regulatory role, clinical significance and underlying mechanisms of circRNAs in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) still remain largely unknown. METHODS:Here, the expression profile of circRNAs in 4 pairs of TNBC tissues and adjacent non-tumor tissues was analyzed by RNA-sequencing. Quantitative real-time PCR and in situ hybridization were used to determine the level and prognostic values of circAGFG1 in two TNBC cohorts. Then, functional experiments in vitro and in vivo were performed to investigate the effects of circAGFG1 on tumor growth and metastasis in TNBC. Mechanistically, fluorescent in situ hybridization, dual luciferase reporter assay, RNA pull-down and RNA immunoprecipitation experiments were performed to confirm the interaction between circAGFG1 and miR-195-5p in TNBC. RESULTS:We found that circAGFG1 was evidently up-regulated in TNBC, and its level was correlated with clinical stage, pathological grade and poor prognosis of patients with TNBC. The results indicated that circAGFG1 could promote TNBC cell proliferation, mobility and invasion as well as tumorigenesis and metastasis in vivo. Mechanistic analysis showed that circAGFG1 may act as a ceRNA (competing endogenous RNA) of miR-195-5p to relieve the repressive effect of miR-195-5p on its target cyclin E1 (CCNE1). CONCLUSIONS:Our findings suggest that circAGFG1 promotes TNBC progression through circAGFG1/miR-195-5p/CCNE1 axis and it may serve as a new diagnostic marker or target for treatment of TNBC patients.
10.1186/s12943-018-0933-7
Comprehensive analysis of dysregulated lncRNAs and their competing endogenous RNA network in triple-negative breast cancer.
Naorem Leimarembi Devi,Prakash Vigneshwar Suriya,Muthaiyan Mathavan,Venkatesan Amouda
International journal of biological macromolecules
The study aimed to explore the molecular mechanism underlying triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and to identify their potential diagnostic/prognostic biomarkers. The differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) were identified by meta-analysis and machine learning feature selection methods. The dysregulated lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network was constructed based on the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) hypothesis. A total of 26 DElncRNAs were identified with a meta-analysis approach of which 18 DElncRNAs attained high accuracy in training and test dataset by Support Vector Machine-Recursive Feature Elimination (SVM-RFE) which could act as diagnostic biomarkers. Among the identified DElncRNAs, LINC01315 and CTA-384D8.35 could act as prognostic biomarkers. Finally, two important sub-modules from lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network were identified which consists of DElncRNAs (LINC01087, LINC01315, and SOX9-AS1) interacting with co-expressed DEmRNAs and DEmiRNAs. Thus, the study indicated the importance of DElncRNAs and highlighted the efficacy as potential biomarkers in TNBC.
10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.12.196
An androgen receptor negatively induced long non-coding RNA ARNILA binding to miR-204 promotes the invasion and metastasis of triple-negative breast cancer.
Yang Fang,Shen Yan,Zhang Wenwen,Jin Juan,Huang Doudou,Fang Hehui,Ji Wenfei,Shi Yaqin,Tang Lin,Chen Weiwei,Zhou Guohua,Guan Xiaoxiang
Cell death and differentiation
Androgen receptor (AR) is emerging as a novel prognostic biomarker in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), but the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. As accumulating evidence has shown that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate important cancer hallmarks, we hypothesised that AR-regulated lncRNAs might play roles in TNBC progression. Here, we performed experiments with or without DHT treatment in three TNBC cell lines, and we identified an AR negatively induced lncRNA (ARNILA), which correlated with poor progression-free survival (PFS) in TNBC patients and promoted epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), invasion and metastasis in vitro and in vivo. Subsequently, we demonstrated that ARNILA functioned as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-204 to facilitate expression of its target gene Sox4, which is known to induce EMT and contribute to breast cancer progression, thereby promoting EMT, invasion and metastasis of TNBC. Our findings not only provide new insights into the mechanisms of lncRNA in regulating AR but also suggest ARNILA as an alternative therapeutic target to suppress metastasis of TNBC patients.
10.1038/s41418-018-0123-6
LincRNA-RoR/miR-145 promote invasion and metastasis in triple-negative breast cancer via targeting MUC1.
Ma Jianli,Yang Yue,Huo Desheng,Wang Zanyu,Zhai Xiaoyu,Chen Jing,Sun Huixin,An Weiwei,Jie Jing,Yang Pengxiang
Biochemical and biophysical research communications
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) was associated with high rates of cancer recurrence and metastasis and currently no available molecularly target. Accumulating evidences have established the importance of lincRNA-ROR as a marker of cancers. In order to better understand the mechanism of lincRNA-ROR in TNBC, we provided a novel molecular target into the regulatory invasion and metastasis in present research. We found that lincRNA-ROR was upregulated in TNBC cell lines and tissue samples. The aberrant expression of lincRNA-ROR was shown to increase invasion and metastasis in MDA-MB-231 and loss of function by siRNA reverse these process. Furthermore, lincRNA-ROR functions as a competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) which sponges miR-145 and therefore upregulate the expression of Mucin1 (MUC1). The expression of MUC1 impacted E-cadherin membrane localization. Together, MUC1 was a potential molecular target may help explain the role of lincRNA-ROR/miR-145 for invasion and metastasis in TNBC cell lines.
10.1016/j.bbrc.2018.04.119
CircAHNAK1 inhibits proliferation and metastasis of triple-negative breast cancer by modulating miR-421 and RASA1.
Xiao Weikai,Zheng Shaoquan,Zou Yutian,Yang Anli,Xie Xinhua,Tang Hailin,Xie Xiaoming
Aging
BACKGROUND:There is increasing evidence that circular RNAs (circRNAs) participate in regulating cancer progression. However, the function and potential molecular mechanisms of circRNA in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) are currently largely unclear. RESULTS:We found that circAHNAK1 was significantly down-regulated in TNBC, and its expression was negatively associated with RFS and OS. Overexpression of circAHNAK1 can inhibit TNBC proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro. In vivo studies confirmed that circAHNAK1 inhibited TNBC tumor growth and metastasis. Mechanistic analysis indicated that circAHNAK1 acted as a miR-421 ceRNA (competitive endogenous RNA) to attenuate the inhibitory effect of miR-421 on its target gene RASA1. CONCLUSIONS:In conclusion, CircAHNAK1 inhibits proliferation and metastasis of TNBC by modulating miR-421 and RASA1. METHODS:CircRNA microarrays were used to screen for differential circRNA expression profiles. qRT-PCR was used to detect the expression levels of circRNAs. The effect of circAHNAK1 on recurrence -free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with TNBC was subsequently analyzed. The role of circAHNKA1 in the progression of TNBC was further evaluated by multiple in vivo and in vitro assays. Finally, we focused on the regulation of circAHNAK1 on miR-421 and its targeted gene RASA1 in TNBC.
10.18632/aging.102539
Adam12 and lnc015192 act as ceRNAs in breast cancer by regulating miR-34a.
Huang Xiaojia,Xie Xinhua,Liu Peng,Yang Lu,Chen Bo,Song Cailu,Tang Hailin,Xie Xiaoming
Oncogene
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are reported to play vital roles in the progress of multiple cancers. However, the functions of lncRNAs in breast cancer remain to be discovered. We performed microarrays to identify the differentially expressed mRNAs and lncRNAs in breast tissues with or without miR-34a knockout. To explore the functions of the differentially expressed mRNA and lncRNA in breast cancer, we conducted a series of experiments. We found that Adam12 and lnc015192 were significantly upregulated in miR-34a knockout breast tissues. Knockdown of Adam12 and lnc015192 inhibited breast cancer cell migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Further experiments revealed that lnc015192 regulated Adam12 expression by functioning as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-34a. In summary, our study demonstrate that Adam12 and lnc015192 promote breast cancer metastasis partly by sponging miR-34a through the ceRNA mechanism.
10.1038/s41388-018-0410-1
Long non-coding RNA NONHSAT101069 promotes epirubicin resistance, migration, and invasion of breast cancer cells through NONHSAT101069/miR-129-5p/Twist1 axis.
Oncogene
Drug resistance, including epirubicin-based therapeutic resistance, is one of the major reasons responsible for the unfavorable prognosis of patients diagnosed with breast cancer (BC). Acquired chemoresistance and metastatic properties have been identified to be closely associated with the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Recently, dysregulation of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been increasingly reported to perform promotive or suppressive functions in chemoresistance and EMT process in multiple cancers. However, relevant novel lncRNA participating in epirubicin resistance and EMT and its underlying molecular mechanisms remain unknown in BC. Herein, we established the epirubicin-resistant breast cancer cell subline (MCF-7/ADR), which presented mesenchymal phenotype and increased metastatic potential. A panel of differentially expressed lncRNAs, including 268 upregulated and 49 downregulated lncRNAs, were identified by high-flux microarray investigation in MCF-7 and MCF-7/ADR cells. The novel lncRNA NONHSAT101069 was significantly overexpressed in BC specimens, BC cell lines, and epirubicin-resistant cell sublines. The knockdown of NONHSAT101069 significantly repressed, whereas overexpression of NONHSAT101069 promoted the epirubicin resistance, migration, invasion and EMT process of BC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Further mechanism-related researches uncovered that NONHSAT101069 functioned as a ceRNA (competing endogenous RNA) via sponging miR-129-5p. Twist1 was a direct downstream protein of NONHSAT101069/miR-129-5p axis in BC cells. To conclude, NONHSAT101069 was upregulated in BC tissues and promoted epirubicin resistance, migration and invasion of BC cells via regulation of NONHSAT101069/miR-129-5p/Twist1 axis, highlighting its potential as an oncogene and a therapeutic biomarker for BC.
10.1038/s41388-019-0904-5
Long noncoding RNA GAS5 suppresses triple negative breast cancer progression through inhibition of proliferation and invasion by competitively binding miR-196a-5p.
Li Shuqin,Zhou Jun,Wang Zhaoxin,Wang Peishun,Gao Xitao,Wang Yan
Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is considered to be the most aggressive and lethal type of breast cancer. Many studies have suggested that the dysfunction of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) is correlated with breast cancer metastasis and progression. Here, we show that levels of the lncRNA, growth arrest-specific transcript 5 (GAS5), are decreased in TNBC tissues, and this down-regulation of GAS5 is associated with an aggressive tumor phenotype in patients, affecting clinical stage, lymph node metastasis and overall survival. Using an ectopic overexpression system in TNBC cells, we found that up-regulation of GAS5 can significantly attenuate proliferation and enhance apoptosis in TNBC cells. Through bioinformatics analysis and verification with qRT-PCR and luciferase assay, we found that GAS5 can bind to miR-196a-5p and there is a negative relationship between GAS5 and miR-196a-5p expression among TNBC patient samples. Furthermore, we demonstrated that overexpression of GAS5 can partially undermine the tumor promotion effect induced by ectopic expression of miR-196a-5p, including invasion and downstream FOXO1/PI3K/AKT signal pathway activation. In our study, GAS5 functioned as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) antagonizing tumor promotion of miR-196a-5p-expressing TNBC cells. These data suggest that GAS5 can suppress TNBC progression by competitively binding miR-196a-5p, therefore GAS5 may be a prognostic biomarker of TNBC.
10.1016/j.biopha.2018.05.056
circGFRA1 and GFRA1 act as ceRNAs in triple negative breast cancer by regulating miR-34a.
He Rongfang,Liu Peng,Xie Xiaoming,Zhou Yujuan,Liao Qianjin,Xiong Wei,Li Xiaoling,Li Guiyuan,Zeng Zhaoyang,Tang Hailin
Journal of experimental & clinical cancer research : CR
BACKGROUD:Accumulating evidences indicate that circular RNAs (circRNAs), a class of non-coding RNAs, play important roles in tumorigenesis. However, the function of circRNAs in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is largely unknown. METHODS:We performed circRNA microarrays to identify circRNAs that are aberrantly expressed in TNBC cell lines. Expression levels of a significantly upregulated circRNA, circGFRA1, was detected by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) in TNBC cell lines and tissues. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to explore the significance of circGFRA1 in clinical prognosis. Then, we examined the functions of circGFRA1 in TNBC by cell proliferation, apoptosis and mouse xenograft assay. In addition, luciferase assay was used to explore the miRNA sponge function of circGFRA1 in TNBC. RESULTS:Microarray analysis and qRT-PCR verified a circRNA termed circGFRA1 that was upregulated in TNBC. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that upregulated circGFRA1 was correlated with poorer survival. Knockdown of circGFRA1 inhibited proliferation and promoted apoptosis in TNBC. Via luciferase reporter assays, circGFRA1 and GFRA1 was observed to directly bind to miR-34a. Subsequent experiments showed that circGFRA1 and GFRA1 regulated the expression of each other by sponging miR-34a. CONCLUSIONS:Taken together, we conclude that circGFRA1 may function as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) to regulate GFRA1 expression through sponging miR-34a to exert regulatory functions in TNBC. circGFRA1 may be a diagnostic biomarker and potential target for TNBC therapy.
10.1186/s13046-017-0614-1
TP73-AS1 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation through miR-200a-mediated TFAM inhibition.
Yao Jia,Xu Feng,Zhang Danhua,Yi Wenjun,Chen Xianyu,Chen Gannong,Zhou Enxiang
Journal of cellular biochemistry
P73 antisense RNA 1T (TP73-AS1 or PDAM) is a long non-coding RNA, which can regulate apoptosis through regulation of p53 signaling-related anti-apoptotic genes. An abnormal change of TP73-AS1 expression was noticed in cancers. The effects of TP73-AS1 in breast cancer (BC) growth and the underlying mechanism remain unclear so far. In the present study, the effect of TP73-AS1 in BC cell lines and clinical tumor samples was detected so as to reveal its role and function. In the present study, TP73-AS1 was specifically upregulated in BC tissues and BC cell lines and was correlated to a poorer prognosis in patients with BC. TP73-AS1 knocking down suppressed human BC cell proliferation in vitro through regulation of TFAM. In our previous study, we demonstrated that miR-200a inhibits BC cell proliferation through targeting TFAM; here we revealed that TP73-AS1 could regulate miR-200a through direct targeting. Moreover, TP73-AS1 might compete with TFAM for miR-200a binding thus to promote TFAM expression. Data from the present study revealed that TP73-AS1 promoted BC cell proliferation through acting as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) by sponging miR-200a. In conclusion, we regarded TP73-AS1 as an oncogenic lncRNA promoting BC cell proliferation and a potential target for human BC treatment.
10.1002/jcb.26231
circEPSTI1 as a Prognostic Marker and Mediator of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Progression.
Chen Bo,Wei Weidong,Huang Xiaojia,Xie Xinhua,Kong Yanan,Dai Danian,Yang Lu,Wang Jin,Tang Hailin,Xie Xiaoming
Theranostics
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) represent a class of non-coding RNAs that play a vital role in modulating gene expression and several pathological responses. However, the expression profile and function of circRNAs in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remain unknown. In the current study, we investigated the expression profile of human circRNAs in TNBC tissues and identified circEPSTI1 (hsa_ circRNA_000479) as a significantly upregulated circRNA. We performed circular RNA microarray assays to screen circular RNA expression profiles of TNBC and further investigated circEPSTI1. We observed the effect of circEPSTI1 on proliferation, clonal formation and apoptosis in TNBC by knocking downcircEPSTI1 in three TNBC cell lines. Based on the MRE analysis and luciferase reporter assay, we found that circEPSTI1 binds to miRNAs as a miRNA sponge and the co-target genes of miRNAs. We performed xenograft experiments in mice to confirm our findings. We evaluated circEPSTI1 levels in 240 TNBC patients by ISH. Knockdown of circEPSTI1 inhibits TNBC cell proliferation and induces apoptosis. and experiments indicated that circEPSTI1 binds to miR-4753 and miR-6809 as a miRNA sponge to regulate BCL11A expression and affect TNBC proliferation and apoptosis. High levels of circEPSTI1 correlate with reduced survival in TNBC patients. The circEPSTI1-miR-4753/6809-BCL11A axis affect the proliferation and apoptosis of triple-negative breast cancer through the mechanism of competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA). In addition, our results identify circEPSTI1 as an independent prognostic marker for survival in patients with TNBC.
10.7150/thno.24106
MALAT1 induced migration and invasion of human breast cancer cells by competitively binding miR-1 with cdc42.
Chou Jinjiang,Wang Bingyu,Zheng Tianjing,Li Xiaoman,Zheng Lufeng,Hu Jinhang,Zhang Yan,Xing Yingying,Xi Tao
Biochemical and biophysical research communications
Competitive endogenous messenger RNAs (ceRNAs) affect other RNAs transcription through competitively binding common microRNAs (miRNAs). In this study we identified long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) MALAT1 can function as a ceRNA of cell division cycle 42 (cdc42) 3'UTR in inducing migration and invasion of breast cancer cells via miR-1. We found that miR-1 bound both MALAT1 and cdc42 3'UTR directly. Further study showed that MALAT1 induced migration and invasion of breast cancer cells while reduced the level of cdc42. Our results suggest that MALAT1 regulated migration and invasion of breast cancer cells via affecting cdc42 through binding miR-1 competitively.
10.1016/j.bbrc.2016.02.102
CircPLK1 sponges miR-296-5p to facilitate triple-negative breast cancer progression.
Epigenomics
To investigate the role of circRNAs in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and the underlying mechanisms. We performed circRNA microarrays to explore the expression profiles of TNBC cell lines. Experiments and were conducted to explore the effects of circPLK1 on tumor proliferation and metastasis as well as the interaction between circPLK1, miR-296-5p and in TNBC. CircPLK1 was significantly upregulated in TNBC and associated with poor survivals. CircPLK1 knockdown inhibited cell growth and invasion as well as tumor occurrence and metastasis . CircPLK1-miR-296-5p- axis regulates tumor progression by ceRNA mechanism in TNBC, indicating that circPLK1 may serve as a prognostic factor and novel therapeutic target for TNBC.
10.2217/epi-2019-0093
Long noncoding RNA AC073284.4 suppresses epithelial-mesenchymal transition by sponging miR-18b-5p in paclitaxel-resistant breast cancer cells.
Wang Yue-Yue,Yan Lei,Yang Shuo,Xu He-Nan,Chen Tian-Tian,Dong Zheng-Yuan,Chen Su-Lian,Wang Wen-Rui,Yang Qing-Ling,Chen Chang-Jie
Journal of cellular physiology
Breast cancer (BC) is the most prevalent malignant cancer in the world, is the leading cause of cancer-related death female. Recently, there is accumulating evidence that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) might as an important role in the progression of BC. (epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is considered to play a vital role in tumor cells migration and invasion. Nevertheless, the entire biological mechanisms and functions of lncRNAs in tumor migration, invasion, and EMT remain uncertain. In the present research, we observed that the expression of lncRNA AC073284.4 was downregulated in BC paclitaxel-resistant (PR) cells (MCF-7/PR) and tissues. Bioinformatics analysis predicted that miR-18b-5p was a direct target of AC073284.4, which has been validated by dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. We further proved that AC073284.4 could directly bind to miR-18b-5p and relieve the suppression for dedicator of cytokinesis protein 4 (DOCK4). Furthermore, the underlying functional experiments demonstrated that AC073284.4 might sponge miR-18b-5p to attenuate the invasion, metastasis, and EMT of BC cell through upregulating DOCK4 expression. In summary, AC073284.4 might serve as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) in BC progression via modulating miR-18b-5p/DOCK4 axis, which weakens EMT and migration of BC. These results suggesting that AC073284.4 might function as a potential novel diagnostic biomarker in the progression of BC.
10.1002/jcp.28887
LncRNA FBXL19-AS1 promotes breast cancer cells proliferation and invasion via acting as a molecular sponge to miR-718.
Bioscience reports
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been suggested to serve vital roles in tumor initiation and progression. However, the expression and underlying mechanisms of lncRNA FBXL19-AS1 in breast cancer (BC) remain unclear. In the present study, we found that FBXL19-AS1 expression was significantly up-regulated and correlated with advanced clinical features and poor overall survival of BC patients. Functionally, FBXL19-AS1 inhibition suppressed BC cells proliferation, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) processes and reduced tumor growth In addition, we found that FBXL19-AS1 might function as a ceRNA to sponge miR-718, and miR-718 could rescue the effects of FBXL19-AS1 on BC cells progression. Therefore, these findings suggested that FBXL19-AS1 might serve as an oncogenic lncRNA and promoted BC progression by sponging miR-718, indicating FBXL19-AS1 could serve as a potential therapeutic target for BC treatment.
10.1042/BSR20182018
Long noncoding RNA ADPGK-AS1 promotes cell proliferation, migration, and EMT process through regulating miR-3196/OTX1 axis in breast cancer.
Yang Jiahui,Wu Weizhu,Wu Minhua,Ding Jinhua
In vitro cellular & developmental biology. Animal
Emerging evidences exposed that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in various tumor progression including breast cancer (BC). However, the role of lncRNA ADP-dependent glucokinase antisense RNA 1 (ADPGK-AS1) in BC progression remains undiscovered. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the role of ADPGK-AS1 in BC. qRT-PCR was performed to investigate ADPGK-AS1 expression level in BC tissues and cell lines. The effect of ADPGK-AS1 knockdown on BC cellular process was assessed by loss-of-function assay. Luciferase reporter and RIP assay were performed to investigate the combination between ADPGK-AS1 and miR-3196. The combination between miR-3196 and orthodenticle homeobox 1 (OTX1) was verified by luciferase reporter assay. Finally, rescue assays were performed to confirm the effects of ADPGK-AS1/miR-3196/OTX1 axis on BC development. ADPGK-AS1 expression level was upregulated in BC tissues and cell lines. High expression of ADPGK-AS1 predicted poor prognosis for BC patients. Functionally, ADPGK-AS1 promoted cell proliferation, migration, induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process, and suppressed cell apoptosis. Mechanistically, ADPGK-AS1 acted as a miR-3196 sponge to release OTX1 in BC cells. Currently, ADPGK-AS1 acted as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) via modulating miR-3196/OTX1 axis in BC.
10.1007/s11626-019-00372-1
Increased Expression of Circular RNA circ_0005230 Indicates Dismal Prognosis in Breast Cancer and Regulates Cell Proliferation and Invasion via miR-618/ CBX8 Signal Pathway.
Xu Yi,Yao Yue,Leng Kaiming,Ji Daolin,Qu Lijun,Liu Yueping,Cui Yunfu
Cellular physiology and biochemistry : international journal of experimental cellular physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology
BACKGROUND/AIMS:Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a class of non-coding RNAs. They have been proved to be critically involved in tumorigenesis and progression of malignancies through competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanism. Nevertheless, the exploration between circRNAs and pathogenesis of breast cancer (BC) is limited. Previously, circ_0005230 was identified upregulated in BC tissues screened by circRNA microarray. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the expression pattern, functional role, and mechanism of circ_0005230 in BC. METHODS:qRT-PCR was conducted to elucidate the expression levels of circ_0005230 in BC tissues and cells. Additionally, the clinical severity and prognostic value were investigated. CCK-8, colony-forming, flow cytometric assays were performed. Animal study was conducted to validate the in vitro data. What's more, Transwell assays were induced to detect the cell metastatic properties of circ_0005230 exerts in BC cells. Luciferase reporter assay was used to measure the mechanism of circ_0005230. RESULTS:circ_0005230 was overexpressed in BC tissue specimens and cell lines. The overexpression of circ_0005230 was related to adverse phenotypes in the patients with BC. In addition, circ_0005230 could be regarded as a prognostic predictor in BC patients. In vitro and in vivo data demonstrated the cell growth promoting role of circ_0005230. Moreover, circ_0005230 could also promote cell migratory and invasive capacities. For the mechanism investigation, circ_0005230 was proved to be a sponge of miR-618, and expression of miR-618 could regulate CBX8 expression via targeting the 3'UTR of CBX8. Rescue assays also illustrated an oncogenic function of circ_0005230 in BC via acting as a miR-618 sponge to promote CBX8 expression. CONCLUSION:circ_0005230/miR-618/CBX8 axis might play a key role in BC tumorigenesis and development.
10.1159/000495675
FOXO1 3'UTR functions as a ceRNA in repressing the metastases of breast cancer cells via regulating miRNA activity.
Yang Jue,Li Tong,Gao Chao,Lv Xiaobo,Liu Kunmei,Song Hui,Xing Yingying,Xi Tao
FEBS letters
The competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) are RNA molecules that affect each other's expression through competition for their shared microRNAs (miRNAs). In this study we explored whether FOXO1 3'UTR can function as a ceRNA in repressing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis of breast cancer cells via regulating miR-9 activity. We found that miR-9 binds to both the FOXO1- and E-cadherin-3'UTR, indicating that the FOXO1- and E-cadherin-3'UTR can be linked through miR-9. Follow-up analyses showed that there existed a competition of miR-9 between FOXO1 and E-cadherin-3'UTR. Thus FOXO1 3'UTR inhibits the metastases of breast cancer cells via induction of E-cadherin expression. Our results suggest that FOXO1 3'UTR may function as a miRNA-inhibitor in modulating metastasis of breast cancer cells.
10.1016/j.febslet.2014.07.003
Long non-coding RNA MIAT promotes breast cancer progression and functions as ceRNA to regulate DUSP7 expression by sponging miR-155-5p.
Luan Tian,Zhang Ximei,Wang Shuyuan,Song Yan,Zhou Shunheng,Lin Jing,An Weiwei,Yuan Weiguang,Yang Yue,Cai Huilong,Zhang Qingyuan,Wang Lihong
Oncotarget
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) have been reported as key regulators in the progression and metastasis of breast cancer. In this study, we found that the lncRNA myocardial infarction associated transcript (MIAT) expression was upregulated in breast cancer in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data sets. We validated that MIAT was higher in breast cancer cell lines and advanced breast tumors than in normal controls. And MIAT overexpression associated with TNM stage and lymphnode metastasis. Knockdown MIAT inhibited breast cancer cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. Also MIAT downregulation suppressed epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and decreased migration and invasion in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines. More importantly, knockdown MIAT inhibited tumor growth . Our results suggested that MIAT acted as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) to regulate the expression of dual specificity phosphatase 7 (DUSP7) by taking up miR-155-5p in breast cancer. There were positive correlation between MIAT and DUSP7 expression in breast cancer patients. We conclude that MIAT promotes breast cancer progression and functions as ceRNA to regulate DUSP7 expression by sponging miR-155-5p in breast cancer.
10.18632/oncotarget.19190
lncRNA OSTN-AS1 May Represent a Novel Immune-Related Prognostic Marker for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Based on Integrated Analysis of a ceRNA Network.
Liu Zijian,Mi Mi,Li Xiaoqian,Zheng Xin,Wu Gang,Zhang Liling
Frontiers in genetics
The competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks are an effective method for investigating cancer; however, construction of ceRNA networks among different subtypes of breast cancer has not been previously performed. Based on analysis of differentially expressed RNAs between 150 triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) tissues and 823 non-triple-negative breast cancer (nTNBC) tissues downloaded from TCGA database, a ceRNA network was constructed based on database comparisons using Cytoscape. Survival analysis and receiver operating characteristic curve data were combined to screen out prognostic candidate genes, which were subsequently analyzed using co-expressed functionally related analysis, Gene Set Variation Analysis (GSVA) pathway-related analysis, and immune infiltration and tumor mutational burden immune-related analysis. A total of 190 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs), 48 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs), and 13 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) were included in the ceRNA network between TNBC and nTNBC subtypes. Gene ontology analysis of mRNAs coexpressed with prognostic candidate lncRNAs (AC104472.1, PSORS1C3, DSCR9, OSTN-AS1, AC012074.1, AC005035.1, SIAH2-AS1, and ERVMER61-1) were utilized for functional prediction. Consequently, OSTN-AS1 was primarily related to immunologic function, for instance, immune cell infiltration and immune-related markers coexpression. The GSVA deviation degree was increased with OSTN increased expression. In addition, many important immune molecules, such as PDCD1 and CTLA-4, were strongly correlated in terms of their quantitative expression. Competing endogenous RNA networks may identify candidate therapeutic targets and potential prognostic biomarkers in breast cancer. In particular, OSTN-AS1 serves as a novel immune-related molecule and could be involved in immunotherapy efforts in the future.
10.3389/fgene.2019.00850
Long non-coding RNA MALAT1 regulates BLCAP mRNA expression through binding to miR-339-5p and promotes poor prognosis in breast cancer.
Zheng Liuhong,Zhang Yuhan,Fu Yajun,Gong Hangdi,Guo Jianjun,Wu Kangjing,Jia Qiaojun,Ding Xianfeng
Bioscience reports
The human genome transcribes a large amount of non-coding RNAs, including long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and microRNAs. LncRNAs and microRNAs have been shown to play a critical regulatory role in tumorigenesis and progression. Competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) affect other RNAs transcription through competitively binding to common microRNAs (miRNAs). MALAT1 is a typical lncRNA that is markedly up-regulated in breast cancer. However, current understanding of the involvement of MALAT1 in breast cancer development and prognosis remains unclear. In the present study, the expression of MALAT1 in clinical samples of breast cancer tissues was found to be significantly up-regulated that was consistent with the result based on the dataset of the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) at cBioportal. A negative correlation between overall survival and the expression of MALAT1 was statistically significant in the group of diagnosis age below 60 or in the group of infiltrating ductal carcinoma analyzed by TCGA database, which declared that MALAT1 might be a potentially useful prognostic factor. Furthermore, the combination of bioinformatics prediction with experimental verifications indicated that lncRNA MALAT1 can regulate BLCAP mRNA expression through binding to miR-339-5p.
10.1042/BSR20181284
Integrated analysis of co-expression and ceRNA network identifies five lncRNAs as prognostic markers for breast cancer.
Yao Yan,Zhang Tingting,Qi Lingyu,Zhou Chao,Wei Junyu,Feng Fubin,Liu Ruijuan,Sun Changgang
Journal of cellular and molecular medicine
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which competitively bind miRNAs to regulate target mRNA expression in the competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) network, have attracted increasing attention in breast cancer research. We aim to find more effective therapeutic targets and prognostic markers for breast cancer. LncRNA, mRNA and miRNA expression profiles of breast cancer were downloaded from TCGA database. We screened the top 5000 lncRNAs, top 5000 mRNAs and all miRNAs to perform weighted gene co-expression network analysis. The correlation between modules and clinical information of breast cancer was identified by Pearson's correlation coefficient. Based on the most relevant modules, we constructed a ceRNA network of breast cancer. Additionally, the standard Kaplan-Meier univariate curve analysis was adopted to identify the prognosis of lncRNAs. Ultimately, a total of 23 and 5 modules were generated in the lncRNAs/mRNAs and miRNAs co-expression network, respectively. According to the Green module of lncRNAs/mRNAs and Blue module of miRNAs, our constructed ceRNA network consisted of 52 lncRNAs, 17miRNAs and 79 mRNAs. Through survival analysis, 5 lncRNAs (AL117190.1, COL4A2-AS1, LINC00184, MEG3 and MIR22HG) were identified as crucial prognostic factors for patients with breast cancer. Taken together, we have identified five novel lncRNAs related to prognosis of breast cancer. Our study has contributed to the deeper understanding of the molecular mechanism of breast cancer and provided novel insights into the use of breast cancer drugs and prognosis.
10.1111/jcmm.14721
circKIF4A acts as a prognostic factor and mediator to regulate the progression of triple-negative breast cancer.
Tang Hailin,Huang Xiaojia,Wang Jin,Yang Lu,Kong Yanan,Gao Guanfeng,Zhang Lijuan,Chen Zhe-Sheng,Xie Xiaoming
Molecular cancer
BACKGROUND:Increasing studies has found that circular RNAs (circRNAs) play vital roles in cancer progression. But the expression profile and function of circRNAs in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are unclear. METHODS:We used a circRNA microarray to explore the circRNA expression profile of TNBC. The expression of the top upregulated circRNA, circKIF4A, was confirmed by qRT-PCR in breast cancer cell lines and tissues. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was conducted to analyze the clinical impact of circKIF4A on TNBC. A series of experiments was performed to explore the functions of circKIF4A in TNBC progression, such as cell proliferation and migration. We investigated the regulatory effect of circKIF4A on miRNA and its target genes to explore the potential regulatory mechanisms of circKIF4A in TNBC. RESULTS:qRT-PCR analyses verified that circKIF4A was significantly upregulated and positively associated with poorer survival of TNBC. The inhibition of circKIF4A suppressed cell proliferation and migration in TNBC. Luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay revealed that circKIF4A and KIF4A could bind to miR-375 and that circKIF4A regulated the expression of KIF4A via sponging miR-375. CONCLUSIONS:The circKIF4A-miR-375-KIF4A axis regulates TNBC progression via the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanism. circKIF4A may therefore serve as a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for TNBC.
10.1186/s12943-019-0946-x
Competing endogenous RNA networks of CYP4Z1 and pseudogene CYP4Z2P confer tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer.
Zheng Lufeng,Li Xiaoman,Meng Xia,Chou Jinjiang,Hu Jinhang,Zhang Feng,Zhang Zhiting,Xing Yingying,Liu Yu,Xi Tao
Molecular and cellular endocrinology
Patients with estrogen receptor α (ERα)-positive breast cancer can be treated with endocrine therapy using anti-estrogens such as tamoxifen; nonetheless, patients often develop resistance limiting the success of breast cancer treatment. The potential mechanisms remain elusive. In detail, many miRNAs have been associated with breast cancer tamoxifen resistance, but no studies have addressed the role of miRNA-mediated competitive endogenous RNAs network (ceRNET) in tamoxifen resistance. The ceRNET between CYP4Z1 and pseudogene CYP4Z2P has been revealed to promote breast cancer angiogenesis. However, its function in tamoxifen resistance remains unclear. Here we report CYP4Z1 and CYP4Z2P were downregulated in MCF-7 cells compared with tamoxifen-resistant MCF-7-TamR cells. Enforced upregulation of CYP4Z1- or CYP4Z2P-3'UTR level renders MCF-7 Cells resistant to tamoxifen. We find that overexpression of CYP4Z1- or CYP4Z2P-3'UTR enhances the transcriptional activity of ERα through the activation of ERα phosphorylation. Furthermore, we find that CYP4Z1- and CYP4Z2P-3'UTRs increase ERα activity dependent on cyclin-dependent kinase 3 (CDK3). Reporter gene and western blot assays revealed that CYP4Z1- and CYP4Z2P-3'UTRs act as CDK3 ceRNAs. More importantly, the blocking of CYP4Z1- and CYP4Z2P-3'UTRs reversed tamoxifen resistance in MCF-7-TamR cells. Our data demonstrates that the ceRNET between CYP4Z1 and pseudogene CYP4Z2P acts as a sub-ceRNET to promote CDK3 expression in ER-positive breast cancer and is a potential therapeutic target for treatment of tamoxifen-resistant breast cancer.
10.1016/j.mce.2016.03.012
Comprehensive analysis of the lncRNA‑associated competing endogenous RNA network in breast cancer.
Wang Jing-Jing,Huang Yue-Qing,Song Wei,Li Yi-Fan,Wang Han,Wang Wen-Jie,Huang Min
Oncology reports
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been confirmed to be potential prognostic markers in a variety of cancers and to interact with microRNAs (miRNAs) as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) to regulate target gene expression. However, the role of lncRNA‑mediated ceRNAs in breast cancer (BC) remains unclear. In the present study, a ceRNA network was generated to explore their role in BC. The expression profiles of mRNAs, miRNAs and lncRNAs in 1,109 BC tissues and 113 normal breast tissues were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas database (TCGA). A total of 3,198 differentially expressed (DE) mRNAs, 150 differentially DEmiRNAs and 1,043 DElncRNAs were identified between BC and normal tissues. A lncRNA‑miRNA‑mRNA network associated with BC was successfully constructed based on the combined data obtained from RNA databases, and comprised 97 lncRNA nodes, 24 miRNA nodes and 74 mRNA nodes. The biological functions of the 74 DEmRNAs were further investigated by Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis. The results demonstrated that the DEmRNAs were significantly enriched in two GO biological process categories; the main biological process enriched term was 'positive regulation of GTPase activity'. By KEGG analysis, four key enriched pathways were obtained, including the 'MAPK signaling pathway', the 'Ras signaling pathway', 'prostate cancer', and the 'FoxO signaling pathway'. Kaplan‑Meier survival analysis revealed that six DElncRNAs (INC AC112721.1, LINC00536, MIR7‑3HG, ADAMTS9‑AS1, AL356479.1 and LINC00466), nine DEmRNAs (KPNA2, RACGAP1, SHCBP1, ZNF367, NTRK2, ORS1, PTGS2, RASGRP1 and SFRP1) and two DEmiRNAs (hsa‑miR‑301b and hsa‑miR‑204) had significant effects on overall survival in BC. The present results demonstrated the aberrant expression of INC AC112721.1, AL356479.1, LINC00466 and MIR7‑3HG in BC, indicating their potential prognostic role in patients with BC.
10.3892/or.2019.7374
circRNA_0025202 Regulates Tamoxifen Sensitivity and Tumor Progression via Regulating the miR-182-5p/FOXO3a Axis in Breast Cancer.
Sang Yuting,Chen Bing,Song Xiaojin,Li Yaming,Liang Yiran,Han Dianwen,Zhang Ning,Zhang Hanwen,Liu Ying,Chen Tong,Li Chen,Wang Lijuan,Zhao Wenjing,Yang Qifeng
Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy
Tamoxifen is the most commonly used endocrine therapy for patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer. Despite its initial therapeutic efficacy, many patients eventually develop drug resistance, which remains a serious clinical challenge. To investigate roles of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in tamoxifen resistance, a tamoxifen-resistant MCF-7 cell line was established and screened for its circRNA expression profile by RNA sequencing. hsa_circ_0025202, a circRNA that was significantly downregulated, was selected for further investigation. Using a large cohort of clinical specimens, we found that hsa_circ_0025202 exhibited low expression in cancer tissues and was negatively correlated with lymphatic metastasis and histological grade. Gain- and loss-of-function assays indicated that hsa_circ_0025202 could inhibit cell proliferation, colony formation, and migration and increase cell apoptosis and sensitivity to tamoxifen. Bioinformatics and luciferase reporter assays verified that hsa_circ_0025202 could act as a miRNA sponge for miR-182-5p and further regulate the expression and activity of FOXO3a. Functional studies revealed that tumor inhibition and tamoxifen sensitization effects of hsa_circ_0025202 were achieved via the miR-182-5p/FOXO3a axis. Moreover, in vivo experiments confirmed that hsa_circ_0025202 could suppress tumor growth and enhance tamoxifen efficacy. Taken together, hsa_circ_0025202 served an anti-oncogenic role in HR-positive breast cancer, and it could be exploited as a novel marker for tamoxifen-resistant breast cancer.
10.1016/j.ymthe.2019.05.011
Long non-coding RNA MIF-AS1 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation, migration and EMT process through regulating miR-1249-3p/HOXB8 axis.
Ding Jinhua,Wu Weizhu,Yang Jiahui,Wu Minhua
Pathology, research and practice
Breast cancer (BC) is one of the leading cause of cancer-related death among females worldwide. Mounting evidences indicate that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) were involved in tumor progression by acting as either oncogenes or tumor suppressors in multiple cancers. In this study, we focused on the function and mechanism of lncRNA Migration Inhibitory Factor Antisense RNA 1 (MIF-AS1) in BC. qRT-PCR showed that MIF-AS1 was upregulated in BC tissues and cells. To detect its bio-function, a series of loss-of-function assays were carried out. Thereafter, we found that MIF-AS1 depletion inhibited BC cell proliferation, migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Recently, increasing studies indicate that lncRNAs can function as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs). Using bioinformatics analysis and luciferase reporter assay, we identified that MIF-AS1 regulated the level of Homeobox B8 (HOXB8) via binding to miR-1249-3p. Taken all together, our findings proved that MIF-AS1 acted as a ceRNA by modulating miR-1249-3p/HOXB8 axis in breast cancer. LncRNA MIF-AS1 might be a new biomarker and therapeutic target for BC patients.
10.1016/j.prp.2019.03.005
LncRNA cancer susceptibility candidate 15 accelerates the breast cancer cells progression via miR-153-3p/KLF5 positive feedback loop.
Yu Leinan,Xu Qun,Yu Weixin,Duan Jianchun,Dai Guofang
Biochemical and biophysical research communications
Emerging literature have illustrated the vital regulatory roles of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) on the breast cancer tumorigenesis. Although series of researches have been proceeded on the pathogenesis, there are still much of unsolved mysteries worth investigating. This study uncovered that CASC15 expression level was aberrantly high-expressed in breast cancer tissue specimens and cells. Functionally, the loss-of-functional experiments showed that knockdown of CASC15 suppressed the malignant behaviors of breast cancer cells, such as proliferation, invasion and tumor growth in vitro and vivo. Mechanically, we confirmed that CASC15 functioned as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) of miR-153-3p, besides, miR-153-3p targeted the 3'-UTR of KLF5 mRNA utilizing the bioinformatics online tools, luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation. Interestingly, we confirmed that the transcription factor KLF5 binds with the promoter region of CASC15 and activates the transcription. In conclusion, we validated the positive feedback loop of KLF5/CASC15/miR-153-3p/KLF5 in the acceleration of breast cancer malignant behaviors and tumorigenesis, suggesting the important biologic roles of CASC15 on the breast cancer tumorigenesis.
10.1016/j.bbrc.2018.10.131
Long non-coding RNA NNT-AS1 affects progression of breast cancer through miR-142-3p/ZEB1 axis.
Li Yan,Lv Min,Song Ziyan,Lou Zhi,Wang Ran,Zhuang Min
Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie
Some evidences have been provided to verify the effects of lncRNA NNT-AS1 on cancer progression. However, the crucial impacts of NNT-AS1 on the malignancy of breast cancer have not been elaborated. This study aims to detect the expression pattern and functional effects of NNT-AS1 in breast cancer. qRT-PCR analysis was applied to detect the expression of NNT-AS1 in both BC tissues and matched normal tissues. Loss of function assay was carried out to detect the effects of silenced NNT-AS1 on proliferation, metastasis and EMT process of BC cells. To understand the functional mechanism of NNT-AS1, mechanism assays were designed and performed in BC cells. Subcellular fractionation assay demonstrated that NNT-AS1 was located in the cytoplasm of BC cells. Therefore, NNT-AS1 might exert ceRNA functions in BC cells. To validate this hypothesis, we found the combination between NNT-AS1 and miR-142-3p through conducting bioinformatics analysis, RIP and luciferase reporter assays. Similarly, the combination between miR-142-3p and ZEB1 was verified. Finally, the recue assays were carried out to demonstrate the effects of NNT-AS1/miR-142-3p/ZEB1 axis on the biological behaviors of BC cells. All the above findings revealed a fact that NNT-AS1 affects breast cancer progression through modulating miR-142-3p/ZEB1 axis.
10.1016/j.biopha.2018.04.087
PTENP1 acts as a ceRNA to regulate PTEN by sponging miR-19b and explores the biological role of PTENP1 in breast cancer.
Li R-K,Gao J-,Guo L-H,Huang G-Q,Luo W-H
Cancer gene therapy
This study aimed to investigate role of long noncoding RNA PTENP1 regulating PTEN expression via miR-19b to affect breast cancer (BC) progression. We measured expressions of PTENP1, miR-19b and PTEN in 65 matched BC cancerous and noncancerous tissues by quantitative real-time fluorescence PCR (qRT-PCR) and investigated the biological effects of PTENP1 in BC MDA-MB-231 cells by several in vitro experiments including CCK8, wound healing, transwell and Annexin V-FITC/PI analysis. Besides, the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) activity of PTENP1 on miR-19b was detected by luciferase reporter assay, and the expressions of related genes and proteins were determined by western blot assay and qRT-PCR. Increased PTENP1 and PTEN and decreased miR-19b were observed in BC tissues and cell lines. Further, PTENP1 and PTEN are direct targets of miR-19b, and overexpressed PTENP1 in MDA-MB-231 cells could supress cell proliferation, migration and invasion and promote cell apoptosis. Moreover, PTENP1 could upregulate PTEN via its ceRNA interaction on miR-19b, as well as induced the upregulation of p53 and downregulation of p-AKT. Enhanced PTENP1 could inhibit BC cell growth, metastasis and tumourigenicity by inhibiting miR-19b and facilitating PTEN in BC, thereby may represent a novel target for diagnosis and treatment of BC.
10.1038/cgt.2017.29
The 3'UTR of the pseudogene CYP4Z2P promotes tumor angiogenesis in breast cancer by acting as a ceRNA for CYP4Z1.
Zheng Lufeng,Li Xiaoman,Gu Yi,Lv Xiaobo,Xi Tao
Breast cancer research and treatment
Pseudogenes are now known to regulate their protein-coding counterparts. Additionally, disturbances of 3'UTRs could increase the risk of cancer susceptibility by acting as modulators of gene expression. The aim of this study was to investigate the roles of the pseudogene CYP4Z2P-3'UTR and functional gene CYP4Z1-3'UTR in breast cancer angiogenesis process. The levels of CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTR and miRNA of interests were measured in 22 cancerous tissues paired with non-cancerous samples by qRT-PCR. The effects of CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTR were studied by overexpression and RNA interference approaches in vitro and ex vivo. Insights of the mechanism of competitive endogenous RNAs were gained from bioinformatic analysis, luciferase assays, and western blot. The positive CYP4Z2P/CYP4Z1 interaction and negative interaction between predicted miRNAs and CYP4Z2P or CYP4Z1 were identified via qRT-PCR assay and bivariate correlation analysis. CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTR share several miRNA-binding sites, including miR-211, miR-125a-3p, miR-197, miR-1226, and miR-204. The CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTRs arrest the interference caused by of these miRNAs, resulting in increased translation of CYP4Z1. Moreover, ectopic expression of the CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTRs exhibit tumor angiogenesis-promoting properties in breast cancer collectively by inducing the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and PI3K/Akt. Co-transfection with Dicer siRNA reversed the CYP4Z2P 3'UTR-mediated changes. Additionally, PI3K or ERK inhibitors reversed CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTR-mediated changes in VEGF-A expression. Increased CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTR expression promotes tumor angiogenesis in breast cancer partly via miRNA-dependent activation of PI3K/Akt and ERK1/2. The CYP4Z2P- and CYP4Z1-3'UTRs could thus be used as combinatorial miRNA inhibitors.
10.1007/s10549-015-3298-2
Systematic analysis of lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA competing endogenous RNA network identifies four-lncRNA signature as a prognostic biomarker for breast cancer.
Fan Chun-Ni,Ma Lei,Liu Ning
Journal of translational medicine
BACKGROUND:Increasing evidence has underscored the role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) acting as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) in the development and progression of tumors. Nevertheless, lncRNA biomarkers in lncRNA-related ceRNA network that can predict the prognosis of breast cancer (BC) are still lacking. The aim of our study was to identify potential lncRNA signatures capable of predicting overall survival (OS) of BC patients. METHODS:The RNA sequencing data and clinical characteristics of BC patients were obtained from the Cancer Genome Atlas database, and differentially expressed lncRNA (DElncRNAs), DEmRNAs, and DEmiRNAs were then identified between BC and normal breast tissue samples. Subsequently, the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA ceRNA network of BC was established, and the gene oncology enrichment analyses for the DEmRNAs interacting with lncRNAs in the ceRNA network was implemented. Using univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses, a four-lncRNA signature was developed and used for predicting the survival in BC patients. We applied receiver operating characteristic analysis to assess the performance of our model. RESULTS:A total of 1061 DElncRNAs, 2150 DEmRNAs, and 82 DEmiRNAs were identified between BC and normal breast tissue samples. A lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA ceRNA network of BC was established, which comprised of 8 DEmiRNAs, 48 DElncRNAs, and 10 DEmRNAs. Further gene oncology enrichment analyses revealed that the DEmRNAs interacting with lncRNAs in the ceRNA network participated in cell leading edge, protease binding, alpha-catenin binding, gamma-catenin binding, and adenylate cyclase binding. A univariate regression analysis of the DElncRNAs revealed 7 lncRNAs (ADAMTS9-AS1, AC061992.1, LINC00536, HOTAIR, AL391421.1, TLR8-AS1 and LINC00491) that were associated with OS of BC patients. A multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that 4 of those lncRNAs (ADAMTS9-AS1, LINC00536, AL391421.1 and LINC00491) had significant prognostic value, and their cumulative risk score indicated that this 4-lncRNA signature independently predicted OS in BC patients. Furthermore, the area under the curve of the 4-lncRNA signature associated with 3-year survival was 0.696. CONCLUSIONS:The current study provides novel insights into the lncRNA-related ceRNA network in BC and the 4 lncRNA biomarkers may be independent prognostic signatures in predicting the survival of BC patients.
10.1186/s12967-018-1640-2
Transcriptional factor six2 promotes the competitive endogenous RNA network between CYP4Z1 and pseudogene CYP4Z2P responsible for maintaining the stemness of breast cancer cells.
Zheng Lufeng,Guo Qianqian,Xiang Chenxi,Liu Shijia,Jiang Yuzhang,Gao Lanlan,Ni Haiwei,Wang Ting,Zhao Qiong,Liu Hai,Xing Yingying,Wang Yaohui,Li Xiaoman,Xi Tao
Journal of hematology & oncology
BACKGROUND:The expression of CYP4Z1 and the pseudogene CYP4Z2P has been shown to be specifically increased in breast cancer by our group and others. Additionally, we previously revealed the roles of the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network mediated by these genes (ceRNET_CC) in breast cancer angiogenesis, apoptosis, and tamoxifen resistance. However, the roles of ceRNET_CC in regulating the stemness of breast cancer cells and the mechanisms through which ceRNET_CC is regulated remain unclear. METHODS:Transcriptional factor six2, CYP4Z1-3'UTR, and CYP4Z2P-3'UTR were stably overexpressed or knocked down in breast cancer cells via lentivirus infection. ChIP-sequencing and RNA-sequencing analysis were performed to reveal the mechanism through which ceRNET_CC is regulated and the transcriptome change mediated by ceRNET_CC. Clinical samples were used to validate the correlation between six2 and ceRNET_CC. Finally, the effects of the six2/ceRNET_CC axis on the stemness of breast cancer cells and chemotherapy sensitivity were evaluated by in vitro and in vivo experiments. RESULTS:We revealed that ceRNET_CC promoted the stemness of breast cancer cells. Mechanistically, six2 activated ceRNET_CC by directly binding to their promoters, thus activating the downstream PI3K/Akt and ERK1/2 pathways. Finally, we demonstrated that the six2/ceRNET_CC axis was involved in chemoresistance. CONCLUSIONS:Our results uncover the mechanism through which ceRNET_CC is regulated, identify novel roles for the six2/ceRNET_CC axis in regulating the stemness of breast cancer cells, and propose the possibility of targeting the six2/ceRNET_CC axis to inhibit breast cancer stem cell (CSC) traits.
10.1186/s13045-019-0697-6
Identification of novel mRNA-miRNA-lncRNA competing endogenous RNA network associated with prognosis of breast cancer.
Zhong Guansheng,Lou Weiyang,Yao Minya,Du Chengyong,Wei Haiyan,Fu Peifen
Epigenomics
To identify novel competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network related to patients prognosis in breast cancer. Dysregulated mRNA based on intersection of three Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets were analyzed by bioinformatics. In total 72 upregulated and 208 downregulated genes were identified. Functional analysis showed that some pathways related to cancer were significantly enriched. By means of stepwise reverse prediction and validation from mRNA to lncRNA, 19 hub genes, nine key miRNA and four key lncRNAs were identified by expression and survival analysis. Ultimately, the coexpression analysis identified -let-7a-5p-/ as key ceRNA subnetwork associated with prognosis of breast cancer. We successfully constructed a novel ceRNA network, among which each component was significantly associated with breast cancer prognosis.
10.2217/epi-2019-0209
The 3'UTR functions as a competing endogenous RNA to inhibit breast cancer metastasis.
Hu Jinhang,Li Xiaoman,Guo Xinwei,Guo Qianqian,Xiang Chenxi,Zhang Zhiting,Xing Yingying,Xi Tao,Zheng Lufeng
Journal of cell science
Diverse RNA transcripts acting as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) can co-regulate each other's expression by competing for shared microRNAs. CCR2 protein, the receptor for CCL2, is implicated in cancer progression. However, we found that a higher mRNA level is remarkably associated with prolonged survival of breast cancer patients. These conflicting results prompted us to study the non-coding function of mRNA. We found that the 3' untranslated region (UTR) inhibited MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cell metastasis by repressing epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) , and suppressed breast cancer metastasis Mechanistically, the 3'UTR modulated the expression of the RhoGAP protein STARD13 via acting as a STARD13 ceRNA in a microRNA-dependent and protein coding-independent manner. The 3'UTR blocked the activation of RhoA-ROCK1 pathway, which is the downstream effector of STARD13, and thus decreased the phosphorylation level of myosin light chain 2 (MLC2) and formation of F-actin. Additionally, the function of the 3'UTR was dependent on STARD13 expression. In conclusion, our results confirmed that the 3'UTR acts as a metastasis suppressor by acting as a ceRNA for STARD13 and thus inhibiting RhoA-ROCK1-MLC-F-actin pathway in breast cancer cells.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.
10.1242/jcs.202127
CeNETs analysis reveals the prognostic value of a signature integration from five lncRNAs in breast cancer.
Wang Ke,Liao Caihua,Zhong Qiong,Dong Haiyan,Zhang Tiancheng,Jin Rongzhong
Journal of cellular biochemistry
BACKGROUND:The competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) hypothesis is a novel effective theory that can enable us to deeply understand the mechanisms of comprehensive diseases. METHODS:In this study, we first downloaded RNAseq data and microRNA (miRNA) seq data of breast cancer from The Cancer Genome Atlas and further explored the regulation of ceRNA network in breast cancer using comprehensive bioinformatics tools. RESULTS:The results revealed that five miRNAs, including hsa-miR-10b, hsa-miR-21, hsa-miR-183, hsa-miR-1258, and hsa-miR-3200 formed the core of ceRNA network. Moreover, five long noncoding RNAs that could competitively bind with miR-10b, respectively, named ACTA2-AS1, RP11-384P7.7, RP11-327J17.9, RP11-124N14.3, and RP11-645C24.5, were discovered as an integration signature with great potential in the prediction of survival outcomes in patients with different stages of breast cancer. CONCLUSIONS:This indicates that these five long noncoding RNAs may be potential novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers of breast cancer.
10.1002/jcb.28626
LncRNA LINC01116 competes with miR-145 for the regulation of ESR1 expression in breast cancer.
Hu H-B,Chen Q,Ding S-Q
European review for medical and pharmacological sciences
OBJECTIVE:To investigate the biological role and clinical significance of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) LINC01116 in breast cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS:In the public database Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), the breast cancer data set GSE54002 was screened for differentially expressed lncRNA LINC01116 in breast cancer tissues and paracancerous tissues. Quantitative Real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of LINC01116 in 64 breast cancer tissues and 30 normal breast tissues. Level of LINC01116 and clinicopathological parameters of breast cancer were statistically analyzed. The effect of LINC01116 in breast cancer cells was investigated after knockdown of LINC01116. Luciferase reporter gene was further used to investigate the mechanism of endogenous RNA (ceRNA). RESULTS:Results of GSE54002 showed that the expression of LINC01116 in breast cancer tissues was significantly increased. In clinical samples, the level of LINC01116 in patients with breast cancer was significantly increased, which was correlated with the overall survival, tumor size and tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage in patients, but not correlated with the age, sex and lymph node metastasis (p>0.05). LINC01116 can act as an endogenous sponge and bind directly to miR-145, resulting in the up-regulation of estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1), a target gene of miR-145. CONCLUSIONS:LncRNA LINC01116 is highly expressed in breast cancer and is a new prognostic biomarker in breast cancer. Our study establishes a new link between LINC01116, miR-145 and ESR1.
10.26355/eurrev_201804_14726
LncRNA GACAT3 predicts poor prognosis and promotes cell proliferation in breast cancer through regulation of miR-497/CCND2.
Zhong Hua,Yang Jun,Zhang Bin,Wang Xiaofang,Pei Lihong,Zhang Lei,Lin Zhiqiang,Wang Yanan,Wang Chengbin
Cancer biomarkers : section A of Disease markers
Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women which increases gradually all over the world. LncRNA GACAT3 has been found to be increased in gastric cancer and associated with tumor malignancy. However, whether GACAT3 plays a role in the regulation of breast cancer is not known. In the present study, we found that GACAT3 expression was increased in breast cancer tissues and cells compared with adjacent normal tissues and normal cells. High GACAT3 expression was correlated with the poor prognosis of breast cancer patients. GACAT3 and cyclin D2 (CCND2) contained a binding site of miR-497. miR-497 was decreased in breast cancer tissues and cells compared with adjacent normal tissues and normal cells. Low miR-497 expression was correlated with the poor prognosis of breast cancer patients. In breast cancer tissues, the expression of miR-497 was negatively correlated with GACAT3. Downregulation of GACAT3 increased miR-497 expression. miR-497 mimic reduced the luciferase of GACAT3 and CCND2. Anti-miR-497 reversed the effects of GACAT3 downregulation. We also found that GACAT3 may act as a ceRNA for miR-497, enhancing the expression of CCND2. In conclusion, GACAT3 promotes breast cancer malignancy by sponging miR-497, leading to the enhancement of its endogenous target CCND2. These results suggest that GACAT3/miR-497/CCND2 is a potential therapeutic target and biomarker for breast cancer.
10.3233/CBM-181354
Circular RNA hsa_circ_0001982 Promotes Breast Cancer Cell Carcinogenesis Through Decreasing miR-143.
Tang Yi-Yin,Zhao Ping,Zou Tian-Ning,Duan Jia-Jun,Zhi Rong,Yang Si-Yuan,Yang De-Chun,Wang Xiao-Li
DNA and cell biology
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a type of noncoding RNAs generated from back-splicing, which have been verified to mediate multiple tumorigenesis. With the development of high-throughput sequencing, massive circRNAs are discovered in tumorous tissue. However, the potential physiological effect of circRNAs in breast cancer is still unknown. The purpose of this study is to investigate the expression profile of circRNA in breast cancer tissue and explore the in-depth regulatory mechanism in breast cancer tumorigenesis. In the present study, we screened the circRNA expression profiles in breast cancer tissue using circRNA microarray analysis. Totally 1705 circRNAs were identified to be significantly aberrant. Among these dysregulated circRNAs, hsa_circ_0001982 was markedly overexpressed in breast cancer tissue and cell lines. Bioinformatics analysis predicted that miR-143 acted as target of hsa_circ_0001982, which was confirmed by Dual-luciferase reporter assay. Loss-of-function and rescue experiments revealed that hsa_circ_0001982 knockdown suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion and induced apoptosis by targeting miR-143. In summary, our study preliminarily investigates the circRNA expression in breast cancer tissue and explores the role of competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanism in the progression, providing a novel insight for breast cancer tumorigenesis.
10.1089/dna.2017.3862
HOXC13-AS promotes breast cancer cell growth through regulating miR-497-5p/PTEN axis.
Li Xiaowei,Wang Qiang,Rui Yiqi,Zhang Chuanqiang,Wang Wenwen,Gu Jianchun,Tang Jinhai,Ding Yongbin
Journal of cellular physiology
Dysregulated long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) remains to be explored in tumorigenesis. LncRNA HOXC13 antisense RNA (HOXC13-AS) has been found as an oncogene in many cancers; however, the role of HOXC13-AS in breast cancer still elusive. In this study, the HOXC13-AS levels and its role in cell proliferation was first measured by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, and colony formation assay. It showed that HOXC13-AS was increased in breast cancer tissues compared with the adjacent normal tissues and upregulated HOXC13-AS promoted the growth of breast cancer cells. Then, we found that the miR-497-5p levels were downregulated in cancer tissues compared with the adjacent tissues and miR-497-5p suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation. Further study showed that HOXC13-AS could function as a "sponge" for miR-497-5p then suppress miR-497-5p expression. Moreover, we next identified that Phosphatase and Tensin homolog (PTEN) is the target of miR-497-5p. Overexpression of miR-497-5p by chemical mimics decreased the expression of PTEN, while downregulation of miR-497-5p by HOXC13-AS rescued the expression of PTEN. Finally, we showed that HOXC13-AS promoted the proliferation of breast cancer cells and tumor growth through miR-497-5p/PTEN axis in vitro and in vivo. Hence, we conclude that HOXC13-AS, which is significantly upregulated in breast cancers, promoted cell proliferation through the suppressed miR-497-5p and further upregulated PTEN.
10.1002/jcp.28800
Identification of competitive endogenous RNAs network in breast cancer.
Wang Xiaojin,Wan Jiahui,Xu Zhanxiang,Jiang Shijun,Ji Lin,Liu Yutian,Zhai Shuwen,Cui Rongjun
Cancer medicine
BACKGROUND:MiRNAs can regulate gene expression directly or indirectly, and long noncoding RNAs as competing endogenous RNA (ceRNAs) can bind to miRNAs competitively and affect mRNA expression. The ceRNA network is still unclear in breast cancer. In this study, a ceRNA network was constructed, and new treatment and prognosis targets and biomarkers for breast cancer were explored. METHODS:A total of 1 096 cancer tissues and 112 adjacent normal tissues to cancer from the TCGA database were used to screen out significant differentially expressed mRNAs (DEMs), lncRNAs (DELs), and miRNAs (DEMis) to construct a ceRNA network. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were used to predict potential functions. Survival analysis was performed to predict which functions were significant for prognosis. RESULTS:From the analysis, 2 139 DEMs, 1 059 DELs, and 84 DEMis were obtained. Targeting predictions for DEMis-DELs and DEMis-DEMs can yield 26 DEMs, 90 DELs, and 18 DEMis. We performed GO enrichment analysis, and the results showed that the upregulated DEMs were involved in nucleosomes, extracellular regions, and nucleosome assembly, while the downregulated DEMs were mainly involved in Z disk, muscle contraction, and structural constituents of muscle. KEGG pathway analysis was performed on all DEMs, and the pathways were enriched in retinol metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and tyrosine metabolism. Through survival analysis of the ceRNA network, we identified four DEMs, two DELs, and two DEMis that were significant for poor prognosis. CONCLUSIONS:This study suggested that constructing a ceRNA network and performing survival analysis on the network could screen out new significant treatment and prognosis targets and biomarkers.
10.1002/cam4.2099
Downregulation of long non-coding RNA Opa interacting protein 5-antisense RNA 1 inhibits breast cancer progression by targeting sex-determining region Y-box 2 by microRNA-129-5p upregulation.
Zeng Huijuan,Wang Jingjie,Chen Tao,Zhang Kai,Chen Jing,Wang Lulu,Li Hanjun,Tuluhong Dilihumaer,Li Jieshou,Wang Shaohua
Cancer science
Several studies have shown an important role for long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in breast cancer progression. The present study investigated the role of lncRNA Opa interacting protein 5-antisense RNA 1 (OIP5-AS1) in the progression of breast cancer. OIP5-AS1 was significantly upregulated in breast cancer tissues and in breast cancer cell lines, and OIP5-AS1 downregulation inhibited the malignant behavior of breast cancer in vitro and in vivo. For in-depth exploration of the mechanism of OIP5-AS1 in breast cancer, we found that expression of microRNA-129-5p(miR-129-5p), which was found to bind sites in the sequence of OIP5-AS1, in breast cancer tissues was negatively correlated with OIP5-AS1. Also, luciferase assays indicated that OIP5-AS1 acted as a miR-129-5p sponge, resulting in upregulated expression of the sex-determining region Y-box 2 (SOX2) transcription factor. Our study showed that OIP5-AS1 plays a critical role in promoting breast cancer progression and that OIP5-AS1 downregulation targets SOX2 by miR-129-5p upregulation.
10.1111/cas.13879
Circular RNA hsa_circ_0008039 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation and migration by regulating miR-432-5p/E2F3 axis.
Liu Yanhua,Lu Cuntao,Zhou Yizhou,Zhang Zhihong,Sun Li
Biochemical and biophysical research communications
As the development of sequencing technology, more and more circular RNAs (circRNAs) are identified in human cancer tissues. Increasing evidences imply circRNAs are important regulators in tumor progression. Nevertheless, how circRNAs participate in breast cancer development and progression is not well understood. In the present study, we identified a novel circRNA hsa_circ_0008039 with upregulated expression level in breast cancer tissues. By functional experiments, we found that hsa_circ_0008039 depletion significantly suppressed the proliferation, arrested cell-cycle progression and reduced migration in breast cancer. Mechanistic investigations suggested that hsa_circ_0008039 served as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) of miR-432-5p. Subsequently, E2F3 was identified as the functional target of miR-432-5p and overexpression of hsa_circ_0008039 elevated E2F3 expression in breast cancer. On the whole, our study indicated that hsa_circ_0008039 exerted oncogenic roles in breast cancer and suggested the hsa_circ_0008039/miR-432-5p/E2F3 axis might be a potential therapeutic target.
10.1016/j.bbrc.2018.05.166
Long noncoding RNA LINC00511 contributes to breast cancer tumourigenesis and stemness by inducing the miR-185-3p/E2F1/Nanog axis.
Lu Guanming,Li Yueyong,Ma Yanfei,Lu Jinlan,Chen Yongcheng,Jiang Qiulan,Qin Qiang,Zhao Lifeng,Huang Qianfang,Luo Zhizhai,Huang Shiqing,Wei Zhongheng
Journal of experimental & clinical cancer research : CR
BACKGROUND:Emerging evidence have illustrated the vital role of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) long intergenic non-protein coding RNA 00511 (LINC00511) on the human cancer progression and tumorigenesis. However, the role of LINC00511 in breast cancer tumourigenesis is still unknown. This research puts emphasis on the function of LINC00511 on the breast cancer tumourigenesis and stemness, and investigates the in-depth mechanism. METHODS:The lncRNA and RNA expression were measured using RT-PCR. Protein levels were measured using western blotting analysis. CCK-8, colony formation assays and transwell assay were performed to evaluate the cell proliferation ability and invasion. Sphere-formation assay was also performed for the stemness. Bioinformatic analysis, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and luciferase reporter assays were carried to confirm the molecular binding. RESULTS:LINC00511 was measured to be highly expressed in the breast cancer specimens and the high-expression was correlated with the poor prognosis. Functionally, the gain and loss-of-functional experiments revealed that LINC00511 promoted the proliferation, sphere-formation ability, stem factors (Oct4, Nanog, SOX2) expression and tumor growth in breast cancer cells. Mechanically, LINC00511 functioned as competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-185-3p to positively recover E2F1 protein. Furthermore, transcription factor E2F1 bind with the promoter region of Nanog gene to promote it transcription. CONCLUSION:In conclusion, our data concludes that LINC00511/miR-185-3p/E2F1/Nanog axis facilitates the breast cancer stemness and tumorigenesis, providing a vital insight for them.
10.1186/s13046-018-0945-6
Gene and lncRNA co-expression network analysis reveals novel ceRNA network for triple-negative breast cancer.
Le Kehao,Guo Hui,Zhang Qiulei,Huang Xiaojuan,Xu Ming,Huang Ziwei,Yi Pengfei
Scientific reports
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy among women, and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive subtype. Increasing evidence has shown that lncRNAs are involved in tumor growth, cell-cycle, and apoptosis through interactions with miRNAs or mRNAs. However, there is still limited data on ceRNAs involved in the molecular mechanisms underlying TNBC. In this study, we applied the weighted gene co-expression network analysis to the existing microarray mRNA and lncRNA expression data obtained from the breast tissues of TNBC patients to find the hub genes and lncRNAs involved in TNBC. Functional enrichment was performed on the module that correlated with Ki-67 status the most (Turquoise module). The hub genes in the Turquoise module were found to be associated with DNA repair, cell proliferation, and the p53 signaling pathway. We performed co-expression analysis of the protein-coding and lncRNA hub genes in the Turquoise module. Analysis of the RNA-seq data obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas database revealed that the protein-coding genes and lncRNAs that were co-expressed were also differentially expressed in the TNBC tissues compared with the normal mammary tissues. On the basis of establishing the ceRNA network, two mRNAs (RAD51AP1 and TYMS) were found to be correlated with overall survival in TNBC. These results suggest that TNBC-specific mRNA and lncRNAs may participate in a complex ceRNA network, which represents a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of TNBC.
10.1038/s41598-019-51626-7
Long noncoding RNA HOXA-AS2 regulates the expression of SCN3A by sponging miR-106a in breast cancer.
Wu Jie,Li Maolan,Zhang Yijian
Journal of cellular biochemistry
Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer that affects women worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) mechanism in breast cancer. Microarray data were downloaded from the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) Xena database. The limma package was used to screen the differentially expressed messenger RNAs (DEMs) and differentially expressed long noncoding RNAs (DELs). Subsequently, functional analysis was performed using DAVID tool. After constructing the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, we identified the major gene modules using the Cytoscape software. Univariate survival analysis in the survival package was performed. Finally, the ceRNA regulatory network was constructed to identify the critical genes. A total of 1380 DEMs and 345 DELs were identified in breast cancer samples compared with normal samples. Functional enrichment analysis showed that DEMs were mainly involved in cell division, and cell cycle. We screened four major gene modules and identified the hub nodes in these functional modules. Several DEMs (including FABP7, C4BPA, and LAMB3) and three long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) (LINC00092, SLC26A4.AS1, and COLCA1) exhibited significant correlation with patients' survival outcomes. In the ceRNA network, the lncRNA HOXA-AS2 regulated the expression level of SCN3A by interacting with hsa-miR-106a-5p. Thus, our study investigated the ceRNA mechanism in breast cancer. The results showed that lncRNA HOXA-AS2 might modulate the expression of SCN3A by sponging miR-106a in breast cancer.
10.1002/jcb.28706
Effect of the LncRNA GAS5-MiR-23a-ATG3 Axis in Regulating Autophagy in Patients with Breast Cancer.
Gu Juan,Wang Yueping,Wang Xuedong,Zhou Daoping,Wang Xinguo,Zhou Ming,He Zhimin
Cellular physiology and biochemistry : international journal of experimental cellular physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology
BACKGROUND/AIMS:An increasing body of evidence shows that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in many different cancers. In this study, we aimed to investigate the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA)-dependent mechanism by which the lncRNA GAS5 contributes to the development of breast cancer. METHODS:A total of 68 breast cancer patients were enrolled, and breast cancer and adjacent normal tissues were collected. The human breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-453, BT549, SK-BR-3 and MCF-7 and human breast cell line MCF10A were utilized in this study. Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and western blotting were performed to detect expression of relative factors. RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) was used to evaluate the relationship between GAS5 and miR-23a, and a dual luciferase reporter gene assay was employed to assess the relationship between ATG3 and miR-23a. A subcutaneous xenograft nude mouse model was generated to examine the role of GAS5 and its regulatory pathway in autophagy. RESULTS:GAS5 levels were frequently decreased in breast cancer tissues and cell lines, and its relatively low expression was closely related to a larger tumour size, advanced tumour-node-metastasis (TNM) stage and estrogen receptor-negative (ER-) breast cancer tissues. More importantly, we found that GAS5 promoted autophagy, with enhanced autophagosome formation after GAS5 overexpression. GAS5 was found to act as a microRNA sponge in a pathway that included miR-23a and its target gene ATG3. The GAS5-miR-23a-ATG3 axis significantly regulated autophagy in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSIONS:In summary, we report that the GAS5-miR-23a-ATG3 axis can be regarded as a key regulator of autophagy pathways in breast cancer; it may constitute a promising biomarker and therapeutic target in the future.
10.1159/000491718
NEAT1 contributes to breast cancer progression through modulating miR-448 and ZEB1.
Jiang Xing,Zhou Yong,Sun Ai-Jun,Xue Jun-Li
Journal of cellular physiology
Breast cancer is a kind of common female cancers. Increasing evidence has exhibited that lncRNAs exert a crucial role in breast cancer. So far, the mechanism of lncRNAs in breast cancer is still not well established. In our current study, we focused on the biological role of lncRNA Nuclear Enriched Abundant Transcript 1 (NEAT1) in breast cancer. We observed that NEAT1 levels were significantly increased in human breast cancer cells including MCF-7, MDA-MB-453, MDA-MB-231, and SKBR3 cells compared to normal mammary epithelial cells MCF-10A while miR-448 was decreased. We found that downregulation of NEAT1 was able to inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells and miR-448 mimic exerted the similar function. Bioinformatics analysis and dual luciferase reporter assays confirmed the negative correlation between NEAT1 and miR-448 in vitro. In addition, ZEB1 was predicted as a novel mRNA target of miR-448. Overexpression of NEAT1 can induce breast cancer cell growth, migration, and invasion by inhibiting miR-448 and upregulating ZEB1. It was demonstrated that NEAT1 can increase ZEB1 levels while miR-448 mimic can repress ZEB1. It was speculated in our study that NEAT1 can serve as a competing endogenous lncRNA (ceRNA) to modulate ZEB1 by sponging miR-448 in breast cancer. To conclude, we uncovered that NEAT1 participated in breast cancer progression by regulating miR-448 and ZEB1. NEAT1 can be provided as a vital biomarker in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment therapy.
10.1002/jcp.26470
Long non-coding RNAs AC026904.1 and UCA1: a "one-two punch" for TGF-β-induced SNAI2 activation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition in breast cancer.
Li Guo-Yin,Wang Wei,Sun Jian-Yong,Xin Bo,Zhang Xiang,Wang Ting,Zhang Qian-Feng,Yao Li-Bo,Han Hua,Fan Dai-Ming,Yang An-Gang,Jia Lin-Tao,Wang Lei
Theranostics
Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) has received much attention as a major inducer of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) during cancer progression, mainly by activating a set of pleiotropic transcription factors including SNAI2/Slug. However, the involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in TGF-β-induced Slug activation and EMT remains largely unknown. In this study, we used microarray analysis to compare lncRNA expression profiles between TGF-β treated and untreated breast cancer cells. Then, the clinical significance of lncRNAs in breast cancer was investigated by qPCR and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. The molecular mechanisms and EMT-promoting effects were analyzed by confocal laser microscopy, Western blotting, chromosome conformation capture (3C), chromatin isolation by RNA purification (ChIRP), ChIP, luciferase reporter assay and transwell migration assay. Lastly, the pro-metastatic effects were evaluated by bioluminescent imaging and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. We observed that TGF-β induced genome-wide changes in lncRNA levels in breast cancer cells, among which AC026904.1 and UCA1 were highly expressed in metastatic breast cancer and closely associated with poor prognosis. Mechanistic study revealed that AC026904.1 and UCA1 were upregulated by non-canonical and canonical TGF-β pathways, respectively. Further analysis showed that AC026904.1 functions as an enhancer RNA in the nucleus, whereas UCA1 exerts a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) activity in the cytoplasm. In addition, the biological functions of these two lncRNAs converged on the activation and maintenance of Slug, constituting a one-two punch in promoting EMT and tumor metastasis. These findings uncover for the first time that AC026904.1 and UCA1 could cooperatively upregulate Slug expression at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels, exerting critical roles in TGF-β-induced EMT. The present work provides new evidence that lncRNAs function as key regulators of EMT and hold great promise to be used as novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets for metastatic breast cancer.
10.7150/thno.23463
Silencing lncRNA SNHG6 suppresses proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells through miR-26a/VASP axis.
Li Kai,Ma Yan-Bin,Tian Yi-Hao,Xu Xiao-Long,Gao Yang,He Yan-Qi,Pan Wen-Ting,Zhang Jing-Wei,He Chun-Jiang,Wei Lei
Pathology, research and practice
The important role of LncRNA in the development of breast cancer is attracting more and more attention. In the previous study, we found that the expression level of LncRNA SNHG6 in breast cancer tissues and cells was significantly increased, but its mechanism in the development of breast cancer was still unclear. Our study found that knockdown of SNHG6 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of breast cancer cells MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. Further study showed that knockdown of SNHG6 significantly inhibited the expression level of VASP. More importantly, SNHG6 and VASP both can bind directly to miR-26a, suggesting that SNHG6 could act as a ceRNA to sponge miR-26a, thereby promoting the expression of VASP, which leading to activated proliferation, migration and invasion of breast cancer cells. Taken together, this study revealed the important role of the SNHG6/miR-26a/VASP regulatory network in the development of breast cancer, and provided a reference for exploring new pathogenesis and biomarkers of breast cancer.
10.1016/j.prp.2019.152575
LncRNA SPRY4-IT1 regulates breast cancer cell stemness through competitively binding miR-6882-3p with TCF7L2.
Song Xinyue,Zhang Xiaoxue,Wang Xinnan,Chen Lianze,Jiang Longyang,Zheng Ang,Zhang Ming,Zhao Lin,Wei Minjie
Journal of cellular and molecular medicine
SPRY4-intronic transcript 1 has been found in several kinds of cancers, but the role of SPRY4-IT1 in breast cancer stem cells has not been studied. We investigated whether SPRY4-IT1 is involved in the promotion of breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs). We used qRT-PCR to detect the expression of SPRY4-IT1 in MCF-7 cells and MCF-7 cancer stem cells (MCF-7 CSCs). The effects of SPRY4-IT1 on the proliferation and renewal ability of breast cancer cells were investigated by in vitro and in vivo assays (ie in situ hybridization, colony formation assay, sphere formation assay, flow cytometry assay, western blotting, xenograft model and immunohistochemistry). The mechanism of SPPRY4-IT1 as a ceRNA was studied by a dual-luciferase reporter assay and bioinformatic analysis. In our study, SPRY4-IT1 was up-regulated in MCF-7 CSCs compared with MCF-7 cells, and high SPRY4-IT1 expression was related to reduced breast cancer patient survival. Furthermore, SPRY4-IT1 overexpression promoted breast cancer cell proliferation and stemness in vitro and in vivo. In addition, SPRY4-IT1 knockdown suppressed BCSC renewal ability and stemness maintenance in vivo and in vitro. The dual-luciferase reporter assays indicated that SPRY4-IT1 as a sponge for miR-6882-3p repressed transcription factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) expression. Taken together, these findings demonstrated that SPRY4-IT1 promotes proliferation and stemness of breast cancer cells as well as renewal ability and stemness maintenance of BCSCs by increasing the expression of TCF7L2 through targeting miR-6882-3p.
10.1111/jcmm.14786
Discovering lncRNA mediated sponge interactions in breast cancer molecular subtypes.
BMC genomics
BACKGROUND:Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can indirectly regulate mRNAs expression levels by sequestering microRNAs (miRNAs), and act as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) or as sponges. Previous studies identified lncRNA-mediated sponge interactions in various cancers including the breast cancer. However, breast cancer subtypes are quite distinct in terms of their molecular profiles; therefore, ceRNAs are expected to be subtype-specific as well. RESULTS:To find lncRNA-mediated ceRNA interactions in breast cancer subtypes, we develop an integrative approach. We conduct partial correlation analysis and kernel independence tests on patient gene expression profiles and further refine the candidate interactions with miRNA target information. We find that although there are sponges common to multiple subtypes, there are also distinct subtype-specific interactions. Functional enrichment of mRNAs that participate in these interactions highlights distinct biological processes for different subtypes. Interestingly, some of the ceRNAs also reside in close proximity in the genome; for example, those involving HOX genes, HOTAIR, miR-196a-1 and miR-196a-2. We also discover subtype-specific sponge interactions with high prognostic potential. We found that patients differ significantly in their survival distributions if they are group based on the expression patterns of specific ceRNA interactions. However, it is not the case if the expression of individual RNAs participating in ceRNA is used. CONCLUSION:These results can help shed light on subtype-specific mechanisms of breast cancer, and the methodology developed herein can help uncover sponges in other diseases.
10.1186/s12864-018-5006-1
XIAP 3'-untranslated region as a ceRNA promotes FSCN1 function in inducing the progression of breast cancer by binding endogenous miR-29a-5p.
Wu Qiang,Yan Hong,Tao Si-Qi,Wang Xiao-Nan,Mou Lang,Chen Ping,Cheng Xing-Wang,Wu Wen-Yong,Wu Zheng-Sheng
Oncotarget
The non-coding 3'-untranslated region (UTR) of genes play an important role in the regulation of microRNA (miRNA) functions, since it can bind and inactivate multiple miRNAs. Herein, we report that ectopic expression of XIAP 3'UTR increased human breast cancer cells proliferation, colony formation, migration, invasion and xenograft tumor growth and suppressed tumor cell death. To investigate this process, we further correlated the genome-wide transcriptional profiling with the gene expression alterations after transfecting XIAP 3'UTR in MCF-7 cells. We identified a robust, genome-wide mechanism of cell migration, motility and epithelial to mesenchymal transition by which mediated by a previously described cellular component movement factor FSCN1. Expression of XIAP and FSCN1 were up-regulated synergistically after transfecting XIAP 3'UTR in vitro and in vivo. Interactions between XIAP and FSCN1 appear to be a key determinant of these processes. Co-transfection with Dicer siRNA reversed the XIAP 3'UTR-mediated oncogenicity, suggesting the miRNAs might be involved in that process. Furthermore, we demonstrated that one miRNA, miR-29a-5p, can bind to both the XIAP and FSCN1 3'UTRs and play an important role in that interactions. We showed that the 3'UTR of XIAP was able to antagonize miR-29a-5p, and resulted in the increased translation of XIAP and FSCN1. Thus, our findings reveal important new insights into how XIAP 3'UTR works, suggesting that the non-coding XIAP 3'UTR serves as a competitor for miRNA binding and subsequently inactivates miRNA functions, by which XIAP 3'UTR frees the target mRNAs from being repressed.
10.18632/oncotarget.15159
LINC00673 is activated by YY1 and promotes the proliferation of breast cancer cells via the miR-515-5p/MARK4/Hippo signaling pathway.
Qiao Kun,Ning Shipeng,Wan Lin,Wu Hao,Wang Qin,Zhang Xingda,Xu Shouping,Pang Da
Journal of experimental & clinical cancer research : CR
BACKGROUND:An increasing number of studies have shown that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play essential roles in tumor initiation and progression. LncRNAs act as tumor promoters or suppressors by targeting specific genes via epigenetic modifications and competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanisms. In this study, we explored the function and detailed mechanisms of long intergenic nonprotein coding RNA 673 (LINC00673) in breast cancer progression. METHODS:Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to examine the expression of LINC00673 in breast cancer tissues and in adjacent normal tissues. Gain-of-function and loss-of function experiments were conducted to investigate the biological functions of LINC00673 in vitro and in vivo. We also explored the potential role of LINC00673 as a therapeutic target using antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) in vivo. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), dual-luciferase reporter assays, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay, and rescue experiments were performed to uncover the detailed mechanism of LINC00673 in promoting breast cancer progression. RESULTS:In the present study, LINC00673 displayed a trend of remarkably increased expression in breast cancer tissues and was associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer patients. Importantly, LINC00673 depletion inhibited breast cancer cell proliferation by inhibiting the cell cycle and increasing apoptosis. Furthermore, ASO therapy targeting LINC00673 substantially suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation in vivo. Mechanistically, LINC00673 was found to act as a ceRNA by sponging miR-515-5p to regulate MARK4 expression, thus inhibiting the Hippo signaling pathway. Finally, ChIP assay showed that the transcription factor Yin Yang 1 (YY1) could bind to the LINC00673 promoter and increase its transcription in cis. CONCLUSIONS:YY1-activated LINC00673 may exert an oncogenic function by acting as a sponge for miR-515-5p to upregulate the MARK4 and then inhibit Hippo signaling pathway, and may serve as a potential therapeutic target.
10.1186/s13046-019-1421-7
LncRNA HCP5 promotes triple negative breast cancer progression as a ceRNA to regulate BIRC3 by sponging miR-219a-5p.
Wang Lihong,Luan Tian,Zhou Shunheng,Lin Jing,Yang Yue,Liu Wei,Tong Xiao,Jiang Wei
Cancer medicine
Emerging evidence has suggested that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNA) involved in the development and progression of cancer. Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) was an aggressive type of breast cancer with high rates of cancer recurrence and metastasis. The pathogenesis of TNBC is largely unknown. Recent studies suggested that lncRNA HCP5 plays an important role in carcinogenesis. The purpose of this study was to examine the function and mechanism of HCP5 in TNBC. We observed that HCP5 was upregulated in TNBC cell lines and specimens. HCP5 knockdown induced TNBC cell apoptosis, and inhibited cell proliferation and orthotopic xenograft tumor growth. RNA sequencing and antibody array suggested that HCP5 achieves its functions through regulating apoptosis pathway. Bioinformatics, luciferase and RIP experiments proved that both HCP5 and BIRC3 could competitively bind to miR-219a-5p. Increased BIRC3 and decreased miR-219a-5p were observed in TNBC tissues and cell lines. We then performed gain- and loss-of-function studies as well as rescue experiments in TNBC cells. The decrease of proliferation and migration due to HCP5 knockdown could be rescued when miR-219a-5p inhibitor or BIRC3 was transfected and vice versa. Our study suggested that lncRNA HCP5 promotes TNBC progression as a ceRNA to regulate BIRC3 by sponging miR-219a-5p. In a word, we revealed a new signaling pathway to mediate TNBC, and provided HCP5 as a new target for improving treatment of TNBC.
10.1002/cam4.2335
SNHG16 contributes to breast cancer cell migration by competitively binding miR-98 with E2F5.
Cai Chang,Huo Qiang,Wang Xiaolong,Chen Bing,Yang Qifeng
Biochemical and biophysical research communications
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been proved to play important roles in cellular processes of cancer, including the development, proliferation, and migration of cancer cells. In the present study, we demonstrated small nucleolar RNA host gene 16 (SNHG16) as an oncogene on cell migration in breast cancer. Expression levels of SNHG16 were found to be frequently higher in breast cancer tissues than in the paired noncancerous tissues. Gain- and loss-of-function studies proved that SNHG16 significantly promoted breast cancer cell migration. We predicted SNHG16 as a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) of E2F transcription factor 5 protein (E2F5) via competition for the shared miR-98 through bioinformatics analysis, and proved this regulation using relative quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), western blot, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay and luciferase reporter assay. In addition, we identified a positive correlation between SNHG16 and E2F5 in breast cancer tissues. Furthermore, we demonstrated that forced expression of miR-98 could partially abrogate SNHG16-mediated increase of breast cancer cells migration, suggesting that SNHG16 promoted cell migration in a miR-98 dependent manner. Taken together, our findings indicated that SNHG16 induces breast cancer cell migration by competitively binding miR-98 with E2F5, and SNHG16 can serve as a potential therapeutic target for breast cancer treatment.
10.1016/j.bbrc.2017.02.094
The long noncoding RNA MIR210HG promotes tumor metastasis by acting as a ceRNA of miR-1226-3p to regulate mucin-1c expression in invasive breast cancer.
Li Xiao-Yu,Zhou Li-Ye,Luo Hao,Zhu Qi,Zuo Liang,Liu Gu-Yue,Feng Chu,Zhao Jun-Yong,Zhang Yuan-Yuan,Li Xue
Aging
BACKGROUND:Long noncoding RNAs have been known to be involved in multiple types of malignancies, including invasive breast cancer (IBC). This study aimed to explore the role of long noncoding RNAs in IBC and elucidate the potential molecular mechanisms. METHODS:Using TCGA microarray data analysis, we identified a long noncoding RNA, MIR210HG, highly expressed in IBC. Kaplan-Meier method and the log-rank test were used for survival analysis. The gain-of-function experiments were performed to assess the function of MIR210HG in IBC invasion and migration in both and settings. Bioinformatic analysis as well as luciferase reporter assay, rescue experiments and western blot assay revealed the mode of action of MIR210HG. RESULTS:The aberrantly enhanced MiR210HG expression predicted poor prognosis and lower survival rate. Knockdown of MiR210HG suppressed IBC cell invasion and metastasis both in and in . MiR-1226-3p was identified and validated to be the target miRNA of MiR210HG. Furthermore, MiR210HG functions as a competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) which sponges miR-1226-3p, therefore upregulates the expression of mucin1 (MUC1-C). CONCLUSIONS:Our study demonstrated that MiR210HG sponges miR-1226-3p to facilitate invasive breast cancer cell invasion and metastasis by regulating mucin-1c and EMT pathway, revealing the oncogenic role of MiR210HG in IBC cells.
10.18632/aging.102149
Mixomics analysis of breast cancer: Long non-coding RNA linc01561 acts as ceRNA involved in the progression of breast cancer.
Jiang Rui,Zhao Chunming,Gao Binbin,Xu Jiawen,Song Wei,Shi Peng
The international journal of biochemistry & cell biology
OBJECTIVE:This study aimed at finding the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), miRNA and mRNA which played critical roles in breast cancer (BrCa) by using mixOmics R package. METHOD:The BrCa dataset were obtained from TCGA and then analyzed using "DESeq2" R package. Multivariate analyses were performed with the "mixOmics" R package and the first component of the stacked partial least-Squares discriminant analysis results were used for searching the interested lncRNA, miRNA and mRNA. qRT-PCR was applied to identify the bioinformatics results in four BrCa cell lines (MCF7, BT-20, ZR-75-1, and MX-1) and the breast epithelial cell line MCF-10 A. Then cells (MCF-1 and MX-1) were transfected with si-linc01561, miR-145-5p mimics and si-MMP11 to further investigate the effects of linc01561, miR-145-5p and MMP11 on the BrCa cells proliferation and apoptosis. RESULTS:MixOmics results showed that linc01561, miR-145-5p and MMP11 might play important roles in BrCa. qRT-PCR results identified that in BrCa cell lines, linc01561 and MMP11 were higher expressed while miR-145-5p was lower expressed compared with those in epithelial cell line. The linc01561 inhibition elevated miR-145-5p expression and then suppressed MMP11 expression. Moreover, linc01561 inhibition suppressed the BrCa cells proliferation and promoted the apoptosis, which was realized by up-regulating expression of miR-145-5p and down-regulating expression of MMP11. CONCLUSION:In summary, the findings of this study, based on ceRNA theory, combining the research foundation of miR-145-5p and MMP11, and taking linc01561 as a new study point, provide new insight into molecular-level reversing proliferation and apoptosis of BrCa.
10.1016/j.biocel.2018.06.003
STARD13-correlated ceRNA network inhibits EMT and metastasis of breast cancer.
Li Xiaoman,Zheng Lufeng,Zhang Feng,Hu Jinhang,Chou Jinjiang,Liu Yu,Xing Yingying,Xi Tao
Oncotarget
Competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) network has been correlated with the initiation and development of cancer. Here, we identify CDH5, HOXD1, and HOXD10 as putative STARD13 ceRNAs and they display concordant patterns with STARD13 in different metastatic potential breast cancer cell lines and tissues. Notably, 3'UTRs of these genes suppress breast cancer metastasis via inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in vitro and in vivo, which are activated through the crosstalk between STARD13 and its ceRNAs in 3'UTR- and miRNA-dependent manners. In addition, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis reveals that mRNA level of STARD13 and its ceRNAs is remarkably associated with survival of breast cancer patients. These results suggest that 3'UTRs of CDH5, HOXD1, and HOXD10 inhibit breast cancer metastasis via serving as STARD13 ceRNAs.
10.18632/oncotarget.8099
Systematical analysis of lncRNA-mRNA competing endogenous RNA network in breast cancer subtypes.
Zhou Shunheng,Wang Lihong,Yang Qian,Liu Haizhou,Meng Qianqian,Jiang Leiming,Wang Shuyuan,Jiang Wei
Breast cancer research and treatment
BACKGROUND:Breast cancer is one of the most common solid tumors in women involving multiple subtypes. However, the mechanism for subtypes of breast cancer is still complicated and unclear. Recently, several studies indicated that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) could act as sponges to compete miRNAs with mRNAs, participating in various biological processes. METHODS:We concentrated on the competing interactions between lncRNAs and mRNAs in four subtypes of breast cancer (basal-like, HER2+, luminal A and luminal B), and analyzed the impacts of competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) on each subtype systematically. We constructed four breast cancer subtype-related lncRNA-mRNA ceRNA networks by integrating the miRNA target information and the expression data of lncRNAs, miRNAs and mRNAs. RESULTS:We constructed the ceRNA network for each breast cancer subtype. Functional analysis revealed that the subtype-related ceRNA networks were enriched in cancer-related pathways in KEGG, such as pathways in cancer, miRNAs in cancer, and PI3k-Akt signaling pathway. In addition, we found three common lncRNAs across the four subtype-related ceRNA networks, NEAT1, OPI5-AS1 and AC008124.1, which played specific roles in each subtype through competing with diverse mRNAs. Finally, the potential drugs for treatment of basal-like subtype could be predicted through reversing the differentially expressed lncRNA in the ceRNA network. CONCLUSION:This study provided a novel perspective of lncRNA-involved ceRNA network to dissect the molecular mechanism for breast cancer.
10.1007/s10549-018-4678-1
Role of the long non-coding RNA PVT1 in the dysregulation of the ceRNA-ceRNA network in human breast cancer.
Conte Federica,Fiscon Giulia,Chiara Matteo,Colombo Teresa,Farina Lorenzo,Paci Paola
PloS one
Recent findings have identified competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) as the drivers in many disease conditions, including cancers. The ceRNAs indirectly regulate each other by reducing the amount of microRNAs (miRNAs) available to target messenger RNAs (mRNAs). The ceRNA interactions mediated by miRNAs are modulated by a titration mechanism, i.e. large changes in the ceRNA expression levels either overcome, or relieve, the miRNA repression on competing RNAs; similarly, a very large miRNA overexpression may abolish competition. The ceRNAs are also called miRNA "decoys" or miRNA "sponges" and encompass different RNAs competing with each other to attract miRNAs for interactions: mRNA, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), pseudogenes, or circular RNAs. Recently, we developed a computational method for identifying ceRNA-ceRNA interactions in breast invasive carcinoma. We were interested in unveiling which lncRNAs could exert the ceRNA activity. We found a drastic rewiring in the cross-talks between ceRNAs from the physiological to the pathological condition. The main actor of this dysregulated lncRNA-associated ceRNA network was the lncRNA PVT1, which revealed a net biding preference towards the miR-200 family members in normal breast tissues. Despite its up-regulation in breast cancer tissues, mimicked by the miR-200 family members, PVT1 stops working as ceRNA in the cancerous state. The specific conditions required for a ceRNA landscape to occur are still far from being determined. Here, we emphasized the importance of the relative concentration of the ceRNAs, and their related miRNAs. In particular, we focused on the withdrawal in breast cancer tissues of the PVT1 ceRNA activity and performed a gene expression and sequence analysis of its multiple isoforms. We found that the PVT1 isoform harbouring the binding site for a representative miRNA of the miR-200 family shows a drastic decrease in its relative concentration with respect to the miRNA abundance in breast cancer tissues, providing a plausibility argument to the breakdown of the sponge program orchestrated by the oncogene PVT1.
10.1371/journal.pone.0171661
Up-regulation of ceRNA TINCR by SP1 contributes to tumorigenesis in breast cancer.
Liu Yun,Du Yaying,Hu Xiaopeng,Zhao Lu,Xia Wenfei
BMC cancer
BACKGROUND:Assembling evidences suggested that aberrant expression of tissue differentiation-inducing non-protein coding RNA (TINCR) intimately associated with variety of human cancer. However, the expression pattern and involvement of TINCR in breast cancer has not been fully investigated. Here we set out to analyze expression of TINCR in breast cancer and elucidate its mechanistic involvement in tumor incidence and progression. METHODS:The expression of TINCR was determined by q-PCR. SP1 binding sites were analyzed by ChIP-qPCR. The relative transcription activity was measured with luciferase reporter assay. Cell viability was measured with CCK-8 method. Clonogenic capacity was evaluated by soft agar assay. Cell apoptosis was analyzed by Annexin V/7-AAD staining. The migration and invasion were determined by trans-well assay and wound healing. The tumor growth in vivo was evaluated in xenograft mice model. Protein expression was quantified by immunoblotting. RESULTS:TINCR was aberrantly up-regulated by SP1, which in turn stimulated cell proliferation, anchorage-independent growth and suppressed cell apoptosis in breast cancer. TINCR silencing significantly suppressed migration and invasion in vitro and xenograft tumor growth in vivo. Mechanistically, TINCR modulated KLF4 expression via competing with miR-7, which consequently contributed to its oncogenic potential. MiR-7 inhibition severely compromised TINCR silencing-elicited tumor repressive effects. CONCLUSION:Our data uncovered a crucial role of TINCR-miR-7-KLF4 axis in human breast cancer.
10.1186/s12885-018-4255-3
LncRNA-CDC6 promotes breast cancer progression and function as ceRNA to target CDC6 by sponging microRNA-215.
Kong Xiaoli,Duan Yi,Sang Yuting,Li Yaming,Zhang Hanwen,Liang Yiran,Liu Ying,Zhang Ning,Yang Qifeng
Journal of cellular physiology
Rapid proliferation and metastasis of breast cancers resulted in poor prognosis in clinic. Recent studies have proved that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) were involved in tumor progression. In this study, we aimed to determine the roles and mechanisms of lncRNA-cell division cycle 6 (CDC6) in regulating proliferation and metastasis of breast cancer. Clinically, lncRNA-CDC6 was highly expressed in tumor tissues and was positively correlated with clinical stages of breast cancers. Functionally, the ectopic expression of lncRNA-CDC6 promoted proliferation via regulation of G1 phase checkpoint, and further promoting the migration capability. Moreover, lncRNA-CDC6 could function as competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) via directly sponging of microRNA-215 (miR-215), which further regulating the expression of CDC6. Taken together, our results proved that lncRNA-CDC6 could function as ceRNA and promote the proliferation and metastasis of breast cancer cells, which provided a novel prognostic marker for breast cancers in clinic.
10.1002/jcp.27587
Comprehensive Analysis of Differentially Expressed Profiles of lncRNAs/mRNAs and miRNAs with Associated ceRNA Networks in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.
Yang Rui,Xing Lei,Wang Min,Chi Hong,Zhang Luyu,Chen Junxia
Cellular physiology and biochemistry : international journal of experimental cellular physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology
BACKGROUND/AIMS:Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subtype of highly malignant breast cancer with poor prognosis. Growing evidence indicates that Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important regulatory roles in the development and progression of a variety of cancers including breast cancer. However, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. METHODS:Here, we compared the expression profiles of mRNAs, lncRNAs and miRNAs between 111 TNBC tissues and 104 non-cancerous tissues utilizing RNA-Seq Data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Gene Ontology and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses were executed to investigate the principal functions of the significantly dysregulated mRNAs. Moreover, Kaplan-Meier survival analyses were performed to determine the effects of differentially expressed lncRNAs/mRNAs/miRNAs on overall survival. Subsequently, we constructed a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network, which included 66 dysregulated lncRNAs, 24 miRNAs and 55 mRNAs. The four dysregulated lncRNAs, three aberrantly expressed miRNAs and four mRNAs were confirmed in the ceRNA network by qRT-PCR in 30 pairs of samples, respectively. RESULTS:A total of 1441 lncRNAs, 114 miRNA and 2501 mRNAs were found to be differentially expressed in TNBC tissues compared with controls. 109 lncRNAs and 124 mRNAs might serve as prognostic signature for patients with TNBC according to the survival analysis. Functional analysis revealed that 19 mRNAs in the ceRNA network were enriched in 17 cancer-related pathways. CONCLUSION:Taken together, we identified novel lncRNAs/miRNAs which may serve as potential biomarkers to predict the survival and therapeutic targets for TNBC patients based on a large-scale sample. More importantly, we constructed the ceRNA network of TNBC, which provides valuable information to further explore the molecular mechanism underlying tumorigenesis and development of TNBC.
10.1159/000494162
circRNA-associated ceRNA network construction reveals the circRNAs involved in the progression and prognosis of breast cancer.
Ma Xiaoran,Liu Cun,Gao Chundi,Li Jie,Zhuang Jing,Liu Lijuan,Li Huayao,Wang Xue,Zhang Xiaoming,Dong Shixia,Zhou Chao,Sun Changgang
Journal of cellular physiology
Recently, increasing evidences show that circular RNAs (circRNAs) are important regulators of various diseases, especially cancer. However, the regulatory role and the potential mechanism of action of circRNAs in breast cancer remain largely unknown. In this study, weighted gene co-expression network analysis was conducted with the differentially expressed miRNAs and mRNAs in breast cancer from The Cancer Genome Atlas database to identify the key modules associated with the carcinogenesis of breast cancer. In the significant turquoise and brown modules, 22 miRNAs and 1877 mRNAs were identified, respectively. Then, We compared and predicted the target genes and performed survival analysis to identify the miRNAs and mRNAs related to the prognosis of breast cancer. A circRNA-related competitive endogenous RNA network was identified by database co-screening, and deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) was identified as a key gene. Finally, to assess how genes in key modules and key genes contribute to the development of breast cancer, relevant pathway information was obtained through DAVID and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis. These data demonstrated that three circRNAs (hsa-circ-0083373, hsa-circ-0083374, and hsa-circ-0083375) that regulate DLC1 expression via hsa-mir-511 and are involved in the pathogenesis and development of breast cancer.
10.1002/jcp.29291
StarD13 3'-untranslated region functions as a ceRNA for TP53INP1 in prohibiting migration and invasion of breast cancer cells by regulating miR-125b activity.
Zheng Lufeng,Li Xiaoman,Chou Jinjiang,Xiang Chenxi,Guo Qianqian,Zhang Zhiting,Guo Xinwei,Gao Lanlan,Xing Yingying,Xi Tao
European journal of cell biology
Competitive endogenous messenger RNA (ceRNA) affects transcription of other RNA molecules by competitively binding common microRNAs. Previous studies have shown that TP53INP1 functions as a suppressor in tumor metastasis. Our study elucidated StarD13 messenger RNA as a ceRNA in regulating migration and invasion of breast cancer cells. MicroRNA-125b was identified to induce metastasis of MCF-7 cells and bind with both StarD13 3'UTR and TP53INP1 3'UTR. Therefore, a ceRNA interaction between StarD13 and TP53INP1 mediated by competitively binding to miR-125b was indicated. Importantly, a microRNA-125b binding site at 4546-4560 nt on StarD13 was verified more vital for this ceRNA interaction. Indirectly regulation of SPARC in inducing metastasis of breast cancer cells by StarD13 via competitively binding with TP53INP1 was further confirmed. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate a ceRNA regulatory network which could give a better understanding of metastatic mechanisms of breast cancer.
10.1016/j.ejcb.2017.11.002
RNA Binding Protein RNPC1 Inhibits Breast Cancer Cell Metastasis via Activating STARD13-Correlated ceRNA Network.
Zheng Lufeng,Zhang Zhiting,Zhang Shufang,Guo Qianqian,Zhang Feng,Gao Lanlan,Ni Haiwei,Guo Xinwei,Xiang Chenxi,Xi Tao
Molecular pharmaceutics
RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are pivotal post-transcriptional regulators. RNPC1, an RBP, acts as a tumor suppressor through binding and regulating the expression of target genes in cancer cells. This study disclosed that RNPC1 expression was positively correlated with breast cancer patients' relapse-free and overall survival and that RNPC1 suppressed breast cancer cell metastasis. Mechanistically, RNPC1 promotes competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network crosstalk among STARD13, CDH5, HOXD10, and HOXD1 (STARD13-correlated ceRNA network), which we previously confirmed in breast cancer cells through stabilizing the transcripts and thus facilitating the expression of these four genes in breast cancer cells. Furthermore, RNPC1 overexpression restrained the promotion of STARD13, CDH5, HOXD10, and HOXD1 knockdown on cell metastasis. Notably, RNPC1 expression was positively correlated with CDH5, HOXD1, and HOXD10 expression in breast cancer tissues and attenuated adriamycin resistance. Taken together, these results identified that RNPC1 could inhibit breast cancer cell metastasis via promoting a STARD13-correlated ceRNA network.
10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.7b01123
STARD13-correlated ceRNA network-directed inhibition on YAP/TAZ activity suppresses stemness of breast cancer via co-regulating Hippo and Rho-GTPase/F-actin signaling.
Zheng Lufeng,Xiang Chenxi,Li Xiaoman,Guo Qianqian,Gao Lanlan,Ni Haiwei,Xia Yufeng,Xi Tao
Journal of hematology & oncology
BACKGROUND:Targeting cancer stem cells is critical for suppressing cancer progression and recurrence. Finding novel markers or related pathways could help eradicate or diagnose cancer in clinic. METHODS:By constructing STARD13-correlated ceRNA 3'UTR stable overexpression or knockdown breast cancer cells, we aimed to explore the effects of STARD13-correlated ceRNA network on breast cancer stemness in vitro and in vivo. Further RNA-sequencing was used to analyze transcriptome change in combination with functional studies on candidate signaling. Clinical samples obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas data were used to validate the correlation between STARD13 and related pathways. Finally, in vitro and in vivo experiments were used to examine the effects of STARD13-correlated ceRNA network on chemotherapy sensitivity/resistance. RESULTS:Here, we revealed that this ceRNA network inhibited stemness of breast cancer. Mechanistically, we found that activation of STARD13-correlated ceRNA network was negatively correlated with YAP/TAZ activity in breast cancer. Specifically, this ceRNA network attenuated YAP/TAZ nuclear accumulation and transcriptional activity via collectively modulating Hippo and Rho-GTPase/F-actin signaling. Finally, we demonstrated that YAP/TAZ transcriptional activity regulated by this ceRNA network was involved in chemoresistance. CONCLUSIONS:Our results uncover a novel mechanism of YAP/TAZ activation in breast cancer and propose the possibility to drive STARD13-correlated ceRNA network to inhibit breast cancer stem cell traits.
10.1186/s13045-018-0613-5
Integrated Analysis of mRNA-miRNA-lncRNA ceRNA Network in Human HR+/Her-2- Breast Cancer and Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
Jia Xiaochen,Shi Yehui,Zhu Yuehong,Meng Wenjing,He Lihong,Jia Yongsheng,Tong Zhongsheng
Journal of computational biology : a journal of computational molecular cell biology
Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease highly diverse in different subtypes, including hormone receptor positive and hormone receptor negative subtypes with variable malignancy, therapy regimen, and different prognosis. In this study, we develop a hormone receptor-specific mRNA-miRNA-lncRNA ceRNA network to identify whether several RNAs play fundamental roles in development and metastasis of breast cancer. To understand the association of ceRNA expression profiles in different breast cancer subgroups, the expression profiles and clinical information of 428 HR+/Her-2- breast cancer samples and 113 triple negative breast cancer samples were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas database (TCGA). We comprehensively integrated and compared expression profiles of mRNAs, miRNAs, and lncRNAs between the two subgroups mentioned. Aberrantly expressed hormone receptor specific RNAs were identified, whereas lncRNA-miRNA interactions predicted by miRcode and miRNA-targeted mRNA interactions were validated by miRTarBase, Targetscan, and miRDB database. In this study, mRNA-miRNA-lncRNA ceRNA network was constructed that consisted of 44 miRNA-lncRNA interaction pairs and 2 miRNA-mRNA interaction pairs, and visualized by Cytoscape software. Prognostic markers of HR-specific subtype of breast cancer associated with overall survival were identified by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Finally, SFRP1, AC006449.1, and MUC2 were novel clinical predictors that may also provide a new therapeutic target in the future.
10.1089/cmb.2019.0152