Long non-coding RNA SLC2A1-AS1 induced by GLI3 promotes aerobic glycolysis and progression in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma by sponging miR-378a-3p to enhance Glut1 expression.

Emerging evidence demonstrates that lncRNAs play pivotal roles in tumor energy metabolism; however, the detailed mechanisms of lncRNAs in the regulation of tumor glycolysis remain largely unknown. The expression of SLC2A1-AS1 was investigated by TCGA, GEO dataset and qRT-PCR. The binding of GLI3 to SLC2A1-AS1 promoter was detected by Luciferase Reporter Assay System and Ago2-RIP assay. FISH was performed to determine the localization of SLC2A1-AS1 in ESCC cells. Double Luciferase Report assay was used to investigate the interaction of miR-378a-3p with SLC2A1-AS1 and Glut1. Gain-of-function and Loss-of-function assay were performed to dissect the function of SLC2A1-AS1/miR-378a-3p/Glut1 axis in ESCC progression in vitro and in vivo. We identified a novel lncRNA SLC2A1-AS1 in ESCC. SLC2A1-AS1 was frequently overexpressed in ESCC tissues and cells, and its overexpression was associated with TNM stage, lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis of ESCC patients. Importantly, GLI3 and SLC2A1-AS1 formed a regulatory feedback loop in ESCC cells. SLC2A1-AS1 promoted cell growth in vitro and in vivo, migration and invasion, and suppressed apoptosis, leading to EMT progression and increased glycolysis in ESCC cells. SLC2A1-AS1 functioned as ceRNA for sponging miR-378a-3p, resulting in Glut1 overexpression in ESCC cells. MiR-378a-3p inhibited cell proliferation and invasion as well as induced apoptosis, resulting in reduced glycolysis, which was partly reversed by SLC2A1-AS1 or Glut1 overexpression in ESCC cells. SLC2A1-AS1 plays important roles in ESCC development and progression by regulating glycolysis, and SLC2A1-AS1/miR-378a-3p/Glut1 regulatory axis may be a novel therapeutic target in terms of metabolic remodeling of ESCC patients.

Liu H ，Zhang Q ，Song Y ，Hao Y ，Cui Y ，Zhang X ，Zhang X ，Qin Y ，Zhu G ，Wang F ，Dang J ，Ma S ，Zhang Y ，Guo W ，Li S ，Guan F ，Fan T ... -  《JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL & CLINICAL CANCER RESEARCH》

LncRNA ZEB2-AS1 promotes the proliferation, migration and invasion of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell through miR-574-3p/HMGA2 axis.

Xu JH ，Chen RZ ，Liu LY ，Li XM ，Wu CP ，Zhou YT ，Yan JD ，Zhang ZY ... -  《-》

TMEM161B-AS1 suppresses proliferation, invasion and glycolysis by targeting miR-23a-3p/HIF1AN signal axis in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Mounting data have shown that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) widely participate in tumour initiation, development, progression and glycolysis in a variety of tumours. However, the clinical prognosis and molecular mechanisms of TMEM161B-AS1 in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remain still unknown. Here, TMEM161B-AS1 and HIF1AN were significantly lower in ESCC tissues than in normal samples, and their low expressions were both related to TNM stage, lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis of ESCC patients. Functionally, TMEM161B-AS1 overexpression or miR-23a-3p depletion suppressed the proliferation, invasion and glycolysis as well as reduced glucose consumption and lactate production in ESCC cells. Mechanistically, TMEM161B-AS1 manipulated HIF1AN expression by competitively sponging miR-23a-3p in ESCC cells. MiR-23a-3p mimic and HIF1AN siRNA partly reversed cell phenotypes mediated by TMEM161B-AS1 in ESCC cells. Collectively, TMEM161B-AS1, miR-23a-3p and HIF1AN may be tightly involved in ESCC development and progression as well as patients' prognosis, and TMEM161B-AS1/miR-23a-3p/HIF1AN signal axis may be a promising target for the treatment of ESCC patients.

Shi Z ，Li G ，Li Z ，Liu J ，Tang Y ... -  《-》

Circular RNA circNTRK2 facilitates the progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma through up-regulating NRIP1 expression via miR-140-3p.

Chen X ，Jiang J ，Zhao Y ，Wang X ，Zhang C ，Zhuan L ，Zhang D ，Zheng Y ... -  《JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL & CLINICAL CANCER RESEARCH》

Exosomal lncRNA ZFAS1 regulates esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell proliferation, invasion, migration and apoptosis via microRNA-124/STAT3 axis.

Li Z ，Qin X ，Bian W ，Li Y ，Shan B ，Yao Z ，Li S ... -  《JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL & CLINICAL CANCER RESEARCH》