Long non-coding RNA FEZF1-AS1 promotes cell invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition through JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in human hepatocellular carcinoma

Publication date: October 2018
Source:Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, Volume 106
Author(s): Ya-Dong Wang, Xue-Jun Sun, Jia-Jun Yin, Min Yin, Wei Wang, Zhe-Qun Nie, Jian Xu
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have emerged as key regulators in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In the present study, we explored the expression profile and biological role of lncRNA FEZF1-AS1 in HCC. We observed remarkable upregulation of FEZF1-AS1 in HCC tissues and cell lines, and high FEZF1-AS1 expression was correlated with aggressive phenotypes and poor prognosis of HCC patients. Furthermore, we found that FEZF1-AS1 knockdown markedly inhibited the proliferation of HCC cells by inducing cell cycle arrest. In addition, FEZF1-AS1 knockdown suppressed HCC tumor growth in vivo. Moreover, FEZF1-AS1 knockdown inhibited the migration and invasion of HCC cells through suppression of JAK2/STAT3 signaling-mediated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). In conclusion, the present study for the first time demonstrated that FEZF1-AS1 serves as an oncogenic lncRNA in human HCC and implicated FEZF1-AS1 as a valuable therapeutic target for HCC treatment.



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