LncRNA HOXA-AS2 Promotes Tumor Progression by Suppressing miR-567 Expression in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

• Published in: Cancer management and research Vol. 13; pp. 5443 - 5455
• Main Authors: Chen, Rui, Wang, Xi, Zhou, Shixian, Zeng, Zongyue
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New Zealand Dove Medical Press Limited 01.01.2021; Taylor & Francis Ltd; Dove; Dove Medical Press
• Subjects: cdk8; Cell culture; Cell cycle; Cell growth; Cloning; Development and progression; Gene expression; Genes; Human subjects; lncrna hoxa-as2; Lung cancer; Medical prognosis; Medical research; Membranes; Metastasis; mir-567; Oral cancer; oral squamous cell carcinoma; Original Research; Proteins; Software; Squamous cell carcinoma; tumor progression; China; United States > US; CDK8; MiR-567; Oral squamous cell carcinoma; LncRNA HOXA-AS2; Tumor progression
• ISSN: 1179-1322; 1179-1322
• DOI: 10.2147/CMAR.S305946

Growing evidence suggests that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), such as lncRNA HOXA-AS2, are critical regulators involved in human cancer. However, the biological functions and detailed mechanisms underlying how lncRNA HOXA-AS2 affects oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) remain unexplored. The expression of lncRNA HOXA-AS2 and miR-567 was determined in OSCC cell lines and clinical tissues by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Target site prediction and luciferase report assays were used to explore their potential interaction and binding sites between lncRNA HOXA-AS2 and miR-567. Overexpression or silencing expression of lncRNA HOXA-AS2 was performed to confirm that miR-567 was suppressed by lncRNA HOXA-AS2. WST-1 assay, crystal staining assay, and cell cycle analysis were used to assess the cell viability and proliferation ability. The target gene of miR-567 was predicted by Targetscan and validated by luciferase report assay as well as qRT-PCR and Western Blot. Xenograft nude mice model was done to demonstrate that lncRNA HOXA-AS2 promoted cell proliferation via targeting miR-567/CDK8 in vivo. LncRNA HOXA-AS2 was up-regulated in OSCC cells and tissues with the expression of miR-567 decreased. The tissue lncRNA HOXA-AS2 expression was found to positively correlate with the TNM stage and lymph node metastasis of OSCC patients. In terms of the mechanism, we found that lncRNA HOXA-AS2 negatively regulates miR-567 expression via a direct interaction. Functionally, overexpression of lncRNA HOXA-AS2 significantly promoted OSCC cell proliferation, while knockdown of lncRNA HOXA-AS2 significantly inhibited it. We also observed that miR-567 directly targets the 3' UTR of CDK8. Moreover, silencing lncRNA HOXA-AS2 inhibited tumor growth with the expression of miR-567 increased and CDK8 decreased in vivo. LncRNA HOXA-AS2 was up-regulated in OSCC, and its up-regulation correlated with poor clinical outcomes. The lncRNA also promoted OSCC cell proliferation by directly binding to miR-567, leading to an increase in CDK8 expression. The potential prognostic value of lncRNA HOXA-AS2 should be explored in future studies.