机构：[1]Medical Faculty of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, China.[2]Department of Ophthalmology, The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China.外科片眼科云南省第一人民医院[3]The Second Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning, China.
Long non-coding RNAs have been implicated in various cancers as they regulate critical cellular processes such as proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis in tumorous tissues. lncRNA-PNUTS is newly reported as an alternatively-spliced lncRNA from PNUTS pre-mRNA that promotes oncogenesis in breast cancer. However, whether LncRNA-PNUTS plays a role in other forms of cancers, such as liver cancer, remains unknown.In the current study, we investigated the potential role of lncRNA-PNUTS in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The levels of lncRNA-PNUTS in tumorous tissues obtained from HCC patients were measured. The potential impacts of lncPNUTS on metastasis and invasion were investigated through gain- or loss- of function experiments in cell models of liver cancers, as well as other cellular assays such as trans-well assays and wound-healing assays.Here, we report that lncPNUTS was upregulated in human HCC tissues. Loss- and gain-of-function experiments indicated lncPNUTS promoted metastasis and invasion. In addition, ZEB1, which is involved in the activation of epithelial-mesenchymal-transition (EMT), was identified as a downstream target of lncPNUTS.Our findings indicated lncPNUTS promotes HCC cancer cell metastasis and invasion via targeting ZEB1 to activate the EMT pathway, suggesting that lncPNUTS is a potential prognostic marker and therapeutic target for HCC patients.
基金：
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support
for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article:
The present study was supported by the Dalian Medical Science
Research Program (grant no. 1812040).
第一作者机构：[1]Medical Faculty of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, China.[2]Department of Ophthalmology, The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
共同第一作者：
通讯作者：
通讯机构：[1]Medical Faculty of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, China.[2]Department of Ophthalmology, The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China.[*1]School of Medicine, Kunming University of Science and Technology, No. 172 Jinbi Road, Xishan District, Kunming, Yunnan 650093, China.
