Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a family of non-protein-coding RNAs that might affect Lung adenocarcinoma (LAD) chemo-resistance and most of them could be used as biomarkers and therapy targets. However, the potential function of lncRNA ANRIL contributed paclitaxel chemo-resistance in LAD is still unknown. This study aimed to observe the expression of ANRIL in LAD, evaluate its biological role in the resistance of LAD cells to paclitaxel and explore the apoptosis role in the ANRIL associated mechanism. Our results showed that ANRIL functioning as a potential oncogene was up-regulated in LAD, and promoted the acquisition of chemo-resistance in paclitaxel partly through the mitochondrial pathway by modulating the expression of apoptosis-related protein cleaved-PARP and Bcl-2. These findings might improve LAD patients' paclitaxel treatment and made ANRIL to be a new target for paclitaxel-based chemotherapy in LAD.
Acetylcholine (ACh), which can be synthesized and secreted by cancer cells, has been reported to play an important role in tumor progression. ACh acts its role through activation of its receptors, muscarinic receptor (mAChR), and nicotinic receptor (nAChR). As a member of mAChR, M3 muscarinic receptor (M3R) is often highly expressed in many cancers. Activation of M3R by ACh participates in the proliferation, differentiation, transformation, and carcinogenesis of cancer. However, the effect of M3R activation on non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains unclear. Here, our study found that ACh dose-dependently promoted the proliferation, invasion, and migration of NSCLC cells. After silencing of M3R, the biological functions of ACh in NSCLC cells were greatly attenuated. Furthermore, ACh stimulation increased the production of IL-8 and time-dependently induced the activation of EGFR, PI3K, and AKT through M3R. In addition, ACh stimulated the activation of PI3K and AKT via EGFR activity, and blocking of PI3K/AKT pathway by special inhibitor LY294002 suppressed the ACh-mediated proliferation, invasion, and migration of NSCLC cells. Taken together, these findings indicate that activation of M3R by ACh enhances the proliferation, invasion, and migration of NSCLC cells. ACh-induced activation of EGFR/PI3K/AKT pathway and subsequent IL-8 upregulation may be one of the important mechanisms of M3R function. Thus, M3R could be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of NSCLC.
Response gene to complement 32 (RGC32) is a novel protein originally identified as a cell cycle activator and has been demonstrated to be overexpressed in a variety of human malignancies, including lung cancer. However, the potential role of RGC32 in lung cancer initiation and progression remains to be elucidated. In the present study, RNA interference mediated by plasmid expressing RGC32 short-hairpin RNA (shRNA) was utilized to knockdown RGC32 expression in human lung cancer LTE cells. We found that the mRNA and protein expression levels of RGC32 were significantly decreased in RGC32-specific shRNA-transfected cells in comparison with the untransfected and control shRNA-transfected cells. Furthermore, knockdown of RGC32 dramatically reduced cell proliferation, colony formation, and invasion and migration capacities of LTE cells in vitro. Specific down-regulation of RGC32 caused G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and eventual apoptosis. Meanwhile, Western blot analysis indicated that cells with stably knockdown of RGC32 showed decreased expression levels of Cyclin D1, Cyclin E, Bcl-2, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, and MMP-9, but increased expression levels of activate caspase-3, Bax, and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) in comparison with control shRNA-transfected cells. Taken together, our data suggest that RGC32 is involved in tumorigenesis of human lung cancer and may serve as a promising therapeutic target for lung cancer.
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