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SNHG16 regulates invasion and migration of bladder cancer through induction of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition

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Abstract

Bladder cancer (BCa) is one of the most common urinary malignancies in the world. Growing evidence suggests that epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a major contributor for BCa metastasis. lncRNA small nucleolar RNA host gene 16 (SNHG16) has been reported as a tumor promoter in many cancers. This study aims to investigate the function and mechanism of SNHG16 on EMT in BCa. Quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to determine the expression of SNHG16 in human BCa tissues and TGF-β-induced cells. Western blot (WB) was performed to evaluate the expression of EMT-related proteins. Transwell assay was exerted to assess the migration and invasion ability of SNHG16 in BCa. RNA pull-down assay was conducted to confirm the RNA–RNA interaction. The precise mechanism by which SNHG16 regulated EMT process in BCa was also explored. SNHG16 was found up-regulated in TGF-β-induced BCa cells and BCa tissues. Transwell assay showed that overexpression of SNHG16 significantly promoted the migration and invasion of BCa cells, whereas knock-down of SNHG16 caused the opposite effects. Then, the interaction between SNHG16 and miR-200a-3p was verified by dual-luciferase reporter assay and RNA pull-down assay. And the effects of knock-down or overexpression of SNHG16 on migration and invasion were reversed by co-transfecting miR-200a-3p inhibitors or mimics. This study first demonstrated that SNHG16 was responsible for EMT of BCa cells via miR-200a-3p/ ZEB1/ZEB2 axis. These results provided a potential therapeutic strategy for BCa treatment, especially in metastatic BCa.

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  1. Wenwei Chen and Tao Jiang are co-first authors

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  1. Department of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, NO. 20 Chazhong Road, Fuzhou, 350005, China

    Wenwei Chen, Tao Jiang, Houping Mao, Rui Gao, Hua Zhang, Yanfeng He, Changyi Liu & Qin Chen

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The Ethics Committee of The First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University approved this study and informed consents were obtained from every patient before operation. (No. FM-1809846).

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Chen, W., Jiang, T., Mao, H. et al. SNHG16 regulates invasion and migration of bladder cancer through induction of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Human Cell 33, 737–749 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13577-020-00343-9

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