PWRN1 low expression facilitates cancer progression and is an unfavorable prognosis factor in breast cancer.

BACKGROUND

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has a poor prognosis due to metastasis and recurrence. The LncRNA PWRN1 is lowly expressed in breast cancer, so we investigated the regulatory mechanism and prognostic value of PWRN1 in TNBC.

METHODS

135 TNBC patients were included. PWRN1 levels and miR-21-5p level were analyzed by RT-qPCR. Independent prognostic factors for TNBC were analyzed using multifactorial Cox regression. CCK-8 was used to test the proliferative capacity of cells. The effects of PWRN1 and miR-21-5p on cell migration and invasive properties were analyzed by Transwell, and their target binding relationship was reported by DLR assay.

RESULTS

PWRN1 was lowly expressed in TNBC patients, while miR-21-5p was highly expressed. PWRN1 expressions were downregulated and miR-21-5p levels were upregulated in TNBC tissues. miR-21-5p is a downstream target gene of PWRN1 and their expression is negatively correlated. Overexpression of PWRN1 led to low expression of miR-21-5p, which reduced cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. In addition, PWRN1 was an independent prognostic factor. Patients in the PWRN1 low expression group had shorter overall survival.

CONCLUSIONS

PWRN1 may be a prognostic marker for TNBC. Overexpression of PWRN1 leads to low expression of miR-21-5p, which affects cell proliferation, migration, and invasive behaviors, thereby preventing poor prognosis in TNBC patients.