Role of Oncogenic Molecule in Pathogenesis of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Posted: Monday, December 2, 2019
A research team at The Affiliated Huaian No.1 People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Jiangsu, China, proposed that HOTAIR, a long noncoding RNA, functions as a competing endogenous RNA and seems to play a role in the biologic mechanisms associated with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. The report, published in Cancer Cell International, suggested that HOTAIR appears to modulate the expression of PRAF2 by competitively binding to miR-326, a microRNA that regulates the expression levels of other genes.
Guo-Jun Yu, PhD, and colleagues used real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction to monitor the expression of HOTAIR in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma cell lines. To detect cell migration and proliferation, analysis of several assays (including Western blotting and RNA immunoprecipitation) was intended to develop a better mechanistic understanding of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.
There was a clear increase in HOTAIR expression in cancerous cell lines. Furthermore, the overexpression of HOTAIR appeared to facilitate cancerous cell migration and proliferation, as well as the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition process. The downregulation of HOTAIR expression inhibited these processes, suggesting it may play a role as an oncogene and positive regulator of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma growth. Based on mechanistic analyses, HOTAIR appears to bind to miR-326, indicating that both may play parts in the proliferation of cancer.
“Deeply investigating the mechanism of HOTAIR in boosting cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma cell growth is conducive to understanding the occurrence, development, and metastasis of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma,” the researchers concluded.
Disclosure: The study authors reported no conflicts of interest.
