Knockdown of Circ_0000144 Suppresses Cell Proliferation, Migration and Invasion in Gastric Cancer Via Sponging MiR-217

Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most common malignancies with high incidence and mortality [23, 27]. As a great threat to public health [18], the challenges of GC treatment are tumor recurrence and metastasis as well as non-specific treatment targets [3]. The occurrence and development of gastric cancer is a complex process involving multiple factors closely associated with the regulation of multiple genes. In recent years, surgery in combination with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, drug and molecular targeted therapies have been applied in the treatment of GC, but the 5-year survival rate of patients still remains less than 30% [10]. Many efforts have been made to improve the pathogenesis and treatment strategies of GC [5]. GC is generally diagnosed at late stage with a poor prognosis due to tumor metastasis [2], which poses a great challenge in improving the survival of gastric cancer patients [9]. Therefore, to further understand the biogenesis and pathogenesis of GC, it is highly urgent to Previous studies have uncovered the role of circ_0000144 in various tumors. Here, we investigated the function and mechanism of circ_0000144 in gastric cancer (GC) progression. The expression of circ_0000144 in GC tissues and cells was detected through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) method. Gain-and loss-of-function experiments including colony formation, wound healing and transwell assays were performed to examine the role of circ_0000144 in GC cells. Furthermore, western blot was conducted to determine the expressions of epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins. The interaction between circ_0000144 and miR-217 was analyzed by bioinformatic analysis and luciferase reporter assays. The circ_0000144 expression was obviously upregulated in GC tissues and cells. Silencing of circ_0000144 inhibited cell proliferation, migration and invasion of GC cells, but ectopic expression of circ_0000144 showed the opposite results. Moreover, circ_0000144 sponged miR-217, and rescue assays revealed that silencing miR-217 expression reversed the inhibitory effect of circ_0000144 knockdown on the progress of GC. Our findings reveal that circ_0000144 inhibition suppresses GC cell proliferation, migration and invasion via absorbing miR-217, providing a new biomarker and potential therapeutic target for treatment of GC.

Automated summary

Gastric cancer is a common malignancy with high incidence and mortality, facing challenges of tumor recurrence, metastasis, and non-specific treatment targets, needing better therapeutic strategies.