LncRNA SBF2-AS1 Regulates Invasion and Proliferation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells Through miR-372-3p/CDK6 Axis

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effects of lncRNA SBF2-AS1 on the proliferation and invasion of hepatoma cells by regulating the miR-372-3p/CDK6 pathway. Methods Bel7402 and SK-hep1 cells were selected as research objects. The expression levels of SBF2-AS1, miR-372-3p, and CDK6 were up- or down-regulated according to different experimental stages, while the expression levels of miR-372-3p and CDK6 in cells were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blot. Dual luciferase reporter assay verified the targeting relationships between SBF2-AS1 and miR-372-3p as well as miR-372-3p and CDK6, respectively. CCK-8, colony formation assay, Transwell, cell cycle assay, and flow cytometry were used to analyze cell proliferation, colony formation, migration/invasion ability, cell cycle activity, and apoptosis. Results SBF2-AS1 was highly expressed in hepatocellular carcinoma cells (P<0.05). SBF2-AS1 knockdown resulted in decreased proliferation and invasion of Bel7402 and SK-hep1 cells (P<0.05). After miR-372-3p knockdown, the proliferation capacity and invasion number of Bel7402 cells were significantly increased. However, the above results were reversed after SBF2-AS1 knockdown (P<0.05). In addition, miR-372-3p targeted CDK6 and inhibited its expression, although over-expressing SFB2-AS1 could reverse the above results (P<0.05). Over-expressing CDK6 could reverse the inhibition of over-expressing miR-372-3p on the proliferation and invasion of Bel7402 cells. Conclusion LncRNA SBF2-AS1 can positively regulate the expression of CDK6 through miR-372-3p. It can also influence the distribution of cell cycle and affect the proliferation and invasion abilities of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Keywords

• sbf2-as1
• mir-372-3p
• cdk6
• liver cancer