AUTHOR=Wang Qing-fang , Wang Qing-lin , Cao Ming-bo 

TITLE=LncRNA PITPNA-AS1 as a Potential Diagnostic Marker and Therapeutic Target Promotes Hepatocellular Carcinoma Progression via Modulating miR-448/ROCK1 Axis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2021.668787

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2021.668787

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> Long non-coding RNAs are critical to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) developments. LncRNA PITPNA antisense RNA 1 (PITPNA-AS1) is a new regulator in several tumors. However, the mechanism by which PITPNA-AS1 mediates the tumorigenesis of HCC remains unclear.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> RT-qPCR was used to detect the level of PITPNA-AS1 in HCC specimens and cells. The biological functions of PITPNA-AS1 were explored by several functional experiments <italic>in vivo</italic> and <italic>in vitro</italic>. The binding relationship among PITPNA-AS1, miR-448 and ROCK1 were studied by Luciferase assay and pull-down assays.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> We found that PITPNA-AS1 expressions were distinctly upregulated in both HCC specimens and cell lines. High PITPNA-AS1 levels were an unfavorable biomarker for patients with HCC. Functionally, knockdown of PITPNA-AS1 suppressed the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells. Mechanistically, PITPNA-AS1 functioned as competing endogenous RNA to increase ROCK1 expressions via sponging miR-448.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> The newly identified PITPNA-AS/miR-448/ROCK1 axis promoted the oncogenicity of HCC cells. This novel axis is likely to be a promising HCC therapeutic aim.</p>