LncRNA DDX11 antisense RNA 1 promotes EMT process of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma by sponging miR-30d-5p to regulate SNAI1/ZEB2 expression and Wnt/β-catenin pathway

Abstract

LncRNA DDX11 antisense RNA 1 (DDX11-AS1) is recognized as having an imperative oncogenic role in different types of human cancer. Nevertheless, the functions, as well as the basic mechanisms of DDX11-AS1 in the EMT process of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), are yet to be clarified. In this research, high DDX11-AS1 expression was detected in ESCC cells as well as tissues and was linked to the poor prognosis of patients with ESCC. DDX11-AS1 promoted cell proliferation, migration, invasion ability and epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) process in vitro. Mechanistic analysis depicted that DDX11-AS1 may function as a ceRNA through sponging miR-30d-5p to upregulate the expression of SNAI1 and ZEB2. Meanwhile, overexpression of DDX11-AS1 might cause the activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway via targeting miR-30d-5p. On the whole, the findings of this research illustrate that DDX11-AS1 may act as an EMT-related lncRNA to advance ESCC progression through sponging miR-30d-5p to regulate SNAI1/ZEB2 expression and activate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, which indicates that it might serve as a probable therapeutic target for ESCC.

miR-30d-5p: A Non-Coding RNA With Potential Diagnostic, Prognostic and Therapeutic Applications

“…The level of HDAC9, the target gene of miR-30d-5p, had the same trend as LOC440173 (Wang et al, 2020). The up-regulation of miR-30d-5p had a blocking effect on the proliferation of esophageal cancer cells, and this effect had also been verified in the invasion of cancer cells (Guo et al, 2021) (Figure 2). Compared with thymidine kinase 1 (TK1), a key enzyme in cell proliferation, miR-30d-5p had a higher sensitivity and specificity to the abnormal proliferation of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells (Zhu et al, 2017).…”

“…In other words, miR-30d-5p interacted with other molecules to influence the clinical indications of esophageal cancer. Additionally, Guo et al showed that miR-30d-5p was decreased in esophageal cancer tissues, while its upregulation inhibited cancer progression (Guo et al, 2021). Although the mechanism of miR-30d-5p in esophageal cancer had been proven, more data are needed to support whether miR-30d-5p can be applied to clinical work.…”

Long non-coding RNA TRPM2 antisense RNA as a potential therapeutic target promotes tumorigenesis and metastasis in esophageal cancer

“…EMT is a carcinogenic process that facilitate cancer metastasis in terms of promoting cell migration, invasion, and apoptosis resistance [ 36 ]. LncRNA DDX11 antisense RNA 1 promotes EMT in EC participating in cancer metastasis [ 44 ]. LncRNA TRPM2-AS also promoted EMT in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) [ 28 ].…”

Integrin-linked kinase affects the sensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells to chemotherapy with cisplatin via the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway

“…β-catenin has been established as a key protein of the classic Wnt signaling pathway(Wnt/β-catenin pathway), and c-MYC and Cylin D1 are downstream target proteins of β-catenin in the Wnt signaling pathway [ 17 ]. Existing studies have shown that the activity of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway plays an important role in the development of ESCC, while the inhibition of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway could also suppress the growth of ESCC cells [ 34 , 35 ]. The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway also plays an important role in the CDDP chemotherapy resistance of tumors, e.g., lung cancer and colon cancer [ 20 , 36–38 ].…”