Hsa_circ_0001944 promotes the growth and metastasis in bladder cancer cells by acting as a competitive endogenous RNA for miR-548

Abstract

Background: Bladder cancer (BC) is a common genitourinary malignancy worldwide. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) participate in cancer development, including BC; thus, the roles of circRNAs in this process have attracted significant attention. Methods: In this study, high-throughput sequencing was used to analyze circRNA expression profiles in BC tissues. We performed RT-qPCR to determine hsa_circ_0001944 expression in BC tissues. We used fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to detect hsa_circ_0001944 expression and hsa_circ_0001944 subcellular localization in BC tissues. hsa_circ_0001944 expression in BC cells was selectively regulated. We employed CCK8, transwell, and wound healing assays to monitor cell proliferation, invasion, and migration, respectively. We employed the dual-luciferase reporter and RNA pulldown assays to verify the relationships among hsa_circ_0001944, miR-548, and PROK2. We examined the effects of hsa_circ_0001944 on BC cell metastasis and proliferation in vivo using a subcutaneous xenograft model and an intravenous tail injection model in nude mice. Results: The results showed that hsa_circ_0001944 expression was significantly increased in BC samples. Furthermore, high hsa_circ_0001944 expression predicted unfavorable prognoses in BC. Functional assays validated that downregulating hsa_circ_0001944 decreased BC invasion and proliferation in vivo and in vitro. Further studies showed that hsa_circ_0001944 expression promoted BC progression via sponging miR-548 and enhancing PROK2 expression. Luciferase reporter experiments validated the interactions between hsa_circ_0001944, miR-548, and PROK2. This study also found that downregulating miR-548 or overexpressing PROK2 restored BC cell invasion and proliferation after silencing hsa_circ_0001944. Conclusions: Taken together, we found that hsa_circ_0001944 is a tumor-promoting circRNA in BC that functions as a competing endogenous RNA to regulate PROK2 expression via sponging miR-548.

Circ_0001944 Contributes to Glycolysis and Tumor Growth by Upregulating NFAT5 Through Acting as a Decoy for miR-142-5p in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

“…14 In addition, high circ_0001944 expression facilitated bladder cancer advancement by upregulating PROK2 via sponging miR-548. 13 Therefore, we concluded that circ_0001944 played a promoting effect on cell tumor growth and glycolysis in NSCLC.…”

“…Circ_0001944 had been uncovered to exert a promoting influence on the tumorigenesis of bladder cancer. 13 Moreover, circ_0001944 was highly expressed in NSCLC tissues. 14 At present, the role of circ_0001944 in NSCLC has not been verified.…”

Circular RNA circFIRRE drives osteosarcoma progression and metastasis through tumorigenic-angiogenic coupling

“…Physiologically, a previous study [37] reported that dominant isoforms of gene FIRRE transcription product was circular, with merely minor linear FIRRE transcript during human embryonic stem cell differentiation. Pathologically, circFIRRE was prominently upregulated and promoted the progression and multiple organ metastases of multiple carcinomas [38][39][40], including bladder cancer, breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). These results suggest that the increased proportion of circFIRRE in transcriptional outputs may be universal.…”

Circular RNA circUBE2J2 acts as the sponge of microRNA-370-5P to suppress hepatocellular carcinoma progression

“…CircRNAs have recently been shown to be involved in neuronal development, regulation of cellular function, immune regulation, pathogenesis of heart failure, and the development of diabetes [9][10][11][12]. Certain types of circRNAs have been found to be significantly dysregulated in gastric cancer, bladder cancer, and triple-negative breast cancer, and these deregulated circRNAs are thought to be involved in the development of cancer [13][14][15]. These findings indicate that circRNAs may become a new type of potential biomarker and therapeutic target for cancer; however, clarifying the dysregulated circRNAs and identifying their functions are still an ongoing process in cancer research.…”