Long non‑coding RNA ADAMTS9‑AS2 inhibits liver cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion

Li,Hanjun; Huang,Hu; Li,Sha; Mei,Hongliang; Cao,Tingjia; Lu,Qiping

doi:10.3892/etm.2021.9991

Long non‑coding RNA ADAMTS9‑AS2 inhibits liver cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion

Authors:
- Hanjun Li
- Hu Huang
- Sha Li
- Hongliang Mei
- Tingjia Cao
- Qiping Lu
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Affiliations: The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510515, P.R. China, Cancer Center, Daping Hospital and Research Institute of Surgery, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400042, P.R. China, Department of Anesthesiology, General Hospital of Central Theater Command of The People's Liberation Army, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, P.R. China, Department of General Surgery, General Hospital of Central Theater Command of The People's Liberation Army, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, P.R. China
Published online on: March 26, 2021 https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2021.9991
Article Number: 559
Copyright: © Li et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Long non‑coding RNA (lncRNA) ADAM metallopeptidase with thrombospondin type 1 motif 9 antisense RNA 2 (ADAMTS9‑AS2) is involved in various types of cancer, such as ovarian cancer, lung cancer and clear cell renal cell carcinoma. However, the roles of ADAMTS9‑AS2 in liver cancer are not completely understood. The present study aimed to determine the functional role of ADAMTS9‑AS2 in human liver cancer and investigate the potential underlying molecular mechanisms. The expression levels of ADAMTS9‑AS2 and ADAMTS9 were determined following ADAMTS9‑AS2 overexpression and knockdown. The results indicated that ADAMTS9‑AS2 overexpression and knockdown increased and decreased ADAMTS9 mRNA and protein expression levels, respectively, indicating that alterations in ADAMTS9 expression corresponded with ADAMTS9‑AS2 expression. Subsequently, the effects of ADAMTS9‑AS2 on liver cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion were analyzed by performing Cell Counting Kit‑8, wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. The results demonstrated that ADAMTS9‑AS2 inhibited liver cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Finally, the effect of ADAMTS9 on PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway‑associated proteins [AKT, phosphorylated‑AKT, phosphatidylinositol‑4, 5‑bisphosphate 3‑kinase catalytic subunit β (PIK3CB), mTOR and phosphorylated‑mTOR], several key autophagy‑related proteins [light chain 3‑I/II (LC3‑I/II), beclin 1 (BECN1) and sequestosome 1 (SQSTM1)] and apoptosis‑related proteins (Bax and Bcl‑2) was detected via western blotting. The results suggested that ADAMTS9‑AS2 downregulated the phosphorylation of AKT and mTOR, the protein expression level of PIK3CB, as well as the expression levels of autophagy protein SQSTM1 and antiapoptotic protein Bcl‑2. By contrast, ADAMTS9‑AS2 upregulated the expression levels of autophagy proteins LC3‑II and BECN1, and the proapoptotic protein Bax. Collectively, ADAMTS9‑AS2 inhibited liver cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion via inhibiting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway. The present study provided a novel insight into the role of ADAMTS9‑AS2 in liver cancer.

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