Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a common urologic malignancy, and up to 30% of RCC patients present with locally advanced or metastatic disease at the time of initial diagnosis. Increasing evidence suggests that circular RNAs (circRNAs) serve as genomic regulatory molecules in various human cancers. Our initial in silico microarray-based analysis identified that circRNA circ_001842 was highly expressed in RCC. Such up-regulation of circ_001842 in RCC was experimentally validated in tissues and cell lines using RT-qPCR. Thereafter, we attempted to identify the role of circ_001842 in the pathogenesis of RCC. Through a series of gain- and loss-of function assays, cell biological functions were examined using colony formation assay, Transwell assay, annexin V-FITC/PI-labelled flow cytometry and scratch test. A high expression of circ_001842 in tissues was observed as associated with poor prognosis of RCC patients. circ_001842 was found to elevate SLC39A14 expression by binding to miR-502-5p, consequently resulting in augmented RCC cell proliferation, migration and invasion, as well as EMT in vitro and tumour growth in vivo. These observations imply the involvement of circ_001842 in RCC pathogenesis through a miR-502-5p-dependent SLC39A14 mechanism, suggesting circ_001842 is a potential target for RCC treatment.
Journal of cellular and molecular medicine. 2020 Jul 30 [Epub ahead of print]
Jiawei Zeng, Qian Feng, Yaodong Wang, Gang Xie, Yuanmeng Li, Yuwei Yang, Jiafu Feng
Department of Clinical Laboratory, Mianyang Central Hospital, Mianyang, China., College of Medical Technology, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China., Department of Urology Surgery, Mianyang Central Hospital, Mianyang, China., Department of Pathology, Mianyang Central Hospital, Mianyang, China., Department of Medical Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, China.