RETRACTED ARTICLE: Long non-coding RNA SNHG4 promotes cervical cancer progression through regulating c-Met via targeting miR-148a-3p

Abstract

Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) SNHG4 has been shown to be associated with the development of a variety of cancers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of SNHG4 on cervical cancer (CC) and the corresponding mechanism. The qRT-PCR was used to determine the expressions of SNHG4 and miR-148a-3p in CC cell lines and tissues. Cell apoptosis and proliferation were measured by flow cytometry and MTT assay, respectively. The interaction between SNHG4, miR-148a-3p and c-Met was verified by bioinformatics, dual-luciferase reporter gene and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP), and the effect of SNHG4 on the growth of CC tumor in vivo was explored. The expression of SNHG4 was increased in both CC cell lines and tissues, while the expression of miR-148a-3p was down-regulated. Meanwhile, silencing SNHG4 remarkably inhibited CC cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. In addition, miR-148a-3p was a direct target gene of SNHG4, and down-regulation of miR-148a-3p could observably reverse the effect of silencing SNHG4 on the proliferation and apoptosis of CC cells. More importantly, SNHG4 could up-regulate the expression of c-Met by targeting and interacting with miR-148a-3p. Finally, in vivo experiments confirmed that silence SNHG4 down-regulated the expression of c-Met by promoting miR-148a-3p, and ultimately suppressed the growth of CC tumor in vivo. In conclusion, SNHG4 could be used as a competitive endogenous RNA to bind to miR-148a-3p, thereby up-regulating the expression of c-Met and ultimately promoting the progression of CC, which provided a potential therapeutic target for the targeted treatment of CC.

Long noncoding RNA SNHG4 promotes renal cell carcinoma tumorigenesis and invasion by acting as ceRNA to sponge miR-204-5p and upregulate RUNX2

“… UISS: UCLA Integrated Staging System *Each patient was staged according to 2010 AJCC TNM classification [ 18 ] …”

“…Among these SNHGs, aberrant expression of SNHG4, located in 5q31.2, has been reported in various human malignancies, such as prostate cancer, osteosarcoma, cervical cancer, and hepatocellular carcinoma [ 17 – 21 ]. For example, lncRNA SNHG4 facilitates cervical tumorigenesis and cancer progression by sponging miR-148a-3p and upregulating the expression of c-Met [ 18 ]. SNHG4 boosts osteosarcoma advancement by competitively binding miR-224-3p [ 20 ].…”

A three-miRNA panel in serum as a noninvasive biomarker for colorectal cancer detection

“…miR-148a-3p has been proved to have important roles in various tumors, including esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer, and more. [33][34][35][36] Moreover, several studies have shown the potential of circulating miR-148a-3p to be a noninvasive biomarker in tumor diagnosis and surveillance. For instance, Abdollahi et al 37 identified a panel containing miR-148a-3p, which could be a diagnostic biomarker of non-small cell lung cancer.…”

MicroRNA‐148a‐3p inhibits cancer progression and is a novel screening biomarker for gastric cancer

“…miR‐148a‐3p could suppress ovarian cancer progression primarily by targeting c‐Met or suppress proliferation and invasion of esophageal cancer by targeting DNMT1 20,21 . Long noncoding RNA SNHG4/miR‐148a‐3p/c‐Met axis was reported to promote cervical cancer progression 22 . In ovarian cancer, LINC00339/miR‐148a‐3p/ROCK1 axis was reported to promote cell proliferation, migration, and invasion 23 .…”