Long Noncoding RNA H19 Promotes Proliferation and Invasion in Human Glioma Cells by Downregulating miR-152.

miR-152 and lncRNA H19 have been frequently implicated in various cellular processes including cell proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis, and apoptosis. However, the interaction between miR-152 and H19 in glioma has never been reported. RT-qPCR was used to examine the expression of miR-152 and H19 in human glioma cell lines and normal human astrocytes (NHAs). The interaction between miR-152 and lncRNA H19 was assessed by dual-luciferase reporter assay. MTT assay and Transwell invasion assay were used to determine the proliferation and invasion of U251 and U87 cells. A xenograft tumor experiment was performed to confirm the role of H19 in vivo. The results showed that H19 expression was upregulated and miR-152 expression was downregulated in human glioma cell lines. H19 downregulation or miR-152 upregulation suppressed glioma cell proliferation and invasion in vitro. Moreover, H19 and miR-152 directly regulated each other. Furthermore, decreased miR-152 expression alleviated si-H19-induced inhibitory effects on proliferation and invasion in glioma cells. As expected, H19 silencing hindered glioma growth in vivo. Taken together, H19 promoted glioma cell proliferation and invasion by negatively regulating miR-152 expression, providing evidence for the potential application of H19 as a biomarker and therapy target for glioma.