Long noncoding RNA Loxl1-As1 promotes cell apoptosis and suppresses cell proliferation in hepatocellular carcinoma in vitro.

BACKGROUND

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second leading cause of death globally. Furthermore, HCC patients have poor long-term survival following curative resection because of a high rate of tumor recurrence. Little is known about the genomic trajectory from primary to early recurrent HCC. The HCC patient survival rate has improved because of improved diagnostic protocols. Increasing numbers of lncRNAs have been revealed to be involved in the carcinogenesis and progression of HCC. Among them, The aim of our study was to examine the prognostic value of Loxl1-As1 expression in patients with HCC.

METHODS

In this study, we analyzed Loxl1-As1 expression in HCC using tissue microarray and fluorescence in situ hybridization. The expression of lncRNA Downregulated in metastatic HCC (Loxl1-As1) in cell lines and tissues was detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and in situ hybridization (ISH); cell counting kit-8, colony formation, and flow cytometry were performed to investigate the role of Loxl1-As1 in HCC cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis in vitro; migration was investigated in HCC cell lines in vitro; and Western blot was used to detect the downstream of Loxl1-As1.

RESULTS

Clinically, Loxl1-As1 correlated with poor prognosis of HCC. Loxl1-As1 was downregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. The ISH assay revealed that Loxl1-As1 expression was significantly decreased in 177 paraffin-embedded samples from patients with HCC compared with non-tumor tissues and Loxl1-As1 expression directly correlated with patient prognosis. In vitro studies indicated that Loxl1-As1 promoted the proliferation and clonogenicity of HCC cells and the expression of Loxl1-As1 suppressed the growth, migration, and metastasis of HCC cells in vitro.

CONCLUSIONS

Collectively, the findings demonstrate that Loxl1-As1 is over-expressed in HCC patients and associated with a poor prognosis. Additionally, Loxl1-As1 plays an important role in HCC progression. These findings support the notion that lncRNA Loxl1-As1 might be a new driver biomarker and future therapeutic target for HCC patients.