Long Noncoding RNA ST8SIA6-AS1 Promotes the Development of Prostate Cancer by Activating the TGF-β/Smad Signaling Pathway Through Regulating the miR-18a-5p/TGFBR1 Axis.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most malignant tumors in men. ST8SIA6-AS1 is a newly identified lncRNA that has been identified as an oncogene in many human cancers. We aimed to investigate the biological effects of lncRNA ST8SIA6-AS1 on the development of PCa. We found that ST8SIA6-AS1 expression was elevated in PCa tissues and cells. ST8SIA6-AS1 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation and migration and promoted cell apoptosis in PCa cells. Furthermore, ST8SIA6-AS1 bound with miR-18a-5p in PCa. TGFBR1 was directly targeted by miR-18a-5p in PCa and mediated the biological influence of miR-18a-5p and ST8SIA6-AS1 in PCa, resulting in TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway activation. Importantly, ST8SIA6-AS1 silencing suppressed tumor growth in PCa xenograft mouse models. In summary, this paper first demonstrated that ST8SIA6-AS1 played an oncogenic role via sponging miR-18a-5p and promoting TGFBR1 level and TGF-β/Smad activation in PCa, providing novel insights for the therapeutic strategies of PCa.