Ji Fei, Du Rong, Chen Tianfeng, Zhang Meng, Zhu Yuanfang, Luo Xin, Ding Yan
Jinan University-affiliated Shenzhen Baoan Women's and Children's Hospital, Shenzhen, 518133, China; The First Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510630, China.
Department of Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumchi, 830000, China.
Mol Ther Nucleic Acids. 2020 Mar 6;19:413-420. doi: 10.1016/j.omtn.2019.11.032. Epub 2019 Dec 6.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are group of noncoding RNAs derived from back-splicing events. Accumulating evidence certifies the critical roles of circRNAs in human tumorigenesis. However, the role and biogenesis of circRNAs in cervical cancer are still unclear. Here, a novel identified circRNA, circSLC26A4, was found to be upregulated in cervical cancer tissue and cells. Clinically, the high expression of circSLC26A4 was related to the poor survival of cervical cancer patients. Functionally, cellular experiments indicated that circSLC26A4 knockdown repressed the proliferation, invasion, and tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, circSLC26A4 acted as the sponge of miR-1287-5p; moreover, miR-1287-5p targeted the 3' UTR of HOXA7 mRNA. Mechanistically, RNA binding protein (RBP) quaking (QKI) was identified to interact with the QKI response elements (QREs) in SLC26A4 gene introns, thereby promoting circSLC26A4 biogenesis. In conclusion, these findings demonstrate that circSLC26A4 facilitates cervical cancer progression through the QKI/circSLC26A4/miR-1287-5p/HOXA7 axis, which might bring novel therapeutic strategies for cervical cancer.
环状RNA(circRNAs)是一类由反向剪接事件产生的非编码RNA。越来越多的证据证明circRNAs在人类肿瘤发生中起关键作用。然而,circRNAs在宫颈癌中的作用和生物发生仍不清楚。在此,一种新鉴定的circRNA,即circSLC26A4,被发现在宫颈癌组织和细胞中上调。临床上,circSLC26A4的高表达与宫颈癌患者的不良生存相关。在功能上,细胞实验表明,敲低circSLC26A4可在体外和体内抑制细胞增殖、侵袭及肿瘤生长。此外,circSLC26A4作为miR-1287-5p的海绵;而且,miR-1287-5p靶向HOXA7 mRNA的3'UTR。机制上,RNA结合蛋白(RBP)震颤蛋白(QKI)被鉴定为与SLC26A4基因内含子中的QKI反应元件(QREs)相互作用,从而促进circSLC26A4的生物发生。总之,这些发现表明circSLC26A4通过QKI/circSLC26A4/miR-1287-5p/HOXA7轴促进宫颈癌进展,这可能为宫颈癌带来新的治疗策略。