circRNA_100859 functions as an oncogene in colon cancer by sponging the miR-217-HIF-1α pathway

Abstract

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play an important role in cancer development and progression by regulating gene expression. The present study aimed to investigate the function of circRNA_100859 in colon cancer. circRNA expression profiles from a human circRNAs chip were analyzed. The effects of circRNA_100859 on cell proliferation and apoptosis were assessed in vitro and interactions between circRNA_100859 and its micro (mi)RNA and target genes were analyzed. The diagnostic and prognostic significance of circRNA_100859 was also investigated. It was identified that circRNA_100859 was overexpressed in colon cancer tissues and promoted cell proliferation and inhibited cell apoptosis. Additionally, bioinformatics and a dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed that circRNA_100859 acted as a miR-217 sponge, and miR-217 directly targeted hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α. Rescue assays demonstrated that HIF-1α protein and mRNA expression levels and cell proliferation were regulated by the circRNA_100859/miR-217 axis ( P <0.05). Furthermore, statistical analysis showed that the circRNA_100859-miR-217-HIF-1α axis was associated with Tumor-Node-Metastasis (TNM) stage, histological grade, and KRAS mutations, and also showed high diagnostic and prognostic value for patients with colon cancer ( P <0.05). Therefore, it was concluded that circRNA_100859 functions as an oncogene in colon cancer by sponging the miR-217-HIF-1α pathway. In addition, the circRNA_100859-miR-217-HIF-1α axis may serve as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for patients with colon cancer.

LINC02257, an Enhancer RNA of Prognostic Value in Colon Adenocarcinoma, Correlates With Multi-Omics Immunotherapy-Related Analysis in 33 Cancers

“…Colon adenocarcinoma is a malignancy that originates from the intestinal epithelium and has a rapid increase in its incidence. Despite remarkable advances in its diagnosis and treatment during the past decades, the prognosis is still not satisfying, with a 5-year survival rate of less than 60% (Zhou et al, 2020). Besides, accumulated evidence supports that frequent postoperative sporadic relapse and/or metastatic recurrence exerts crucial effects on the prognosis of colon adenocarcinoma patients.…”

Oncogenic Functions and Clinical Significance of Circular RNAs in Colorectal Cancer

“…Chen et al, 2020 [ 110 ] described circERBIN (hsa_circ_0001492, hsa_circ_000729) in CRC and revealed that circERBIN/miR-125a-5p/miR-138-5p/4EBP-1 axis is leading to activation of the HIF-1α signaling pathway. Hsa_circ_100859 (hsa_circ_0023064) participates in colon cancer progression via sponging of miR-217 and upregulation of the expression levels of HIF-1α (hypoxia-inducible factor-1α) [ 111 ].…”

The Biomarker and Therapeutic Potential of Circular Rnas in Schizophrenia

“…These studies mainly described specific human circular RNA and its potential microRNA target. The vast majority of these investigations has been published during the last two years and describes the role of miRNA sponging in breast [ 83 ], lung [ 84 ], colon [ 85 ], and other cancer types [ 86 , 87 ]. Interestingly, some of them, for example, hsa_circ_0009910, potentially play a role in a wide range of malignancies [ 88 ].…”