Involvement of long non-coding RNAs in the progression of esophageal cancer

Esophageal cancer(EC)is one of the most common malignant tumors of the digestive system with high incidence and mortality rate worldwide.Therefore,exploring the pathogenesis of ECand searching for new targeted therapies are the current research hotspot for EC treatment.Long non-coding RNAs(lncRNAs)are endogenous RNAs with more than 200 nucleotides,but without proteincoding function.In recent years,lncRNAs have gradually become the focuses in the field of non-coding RNA.Some lncRNAs have been proved to be closely related to the pathogenesis of EC.Many lncRNAs are abnormally expressed in EC and participate in many biological processes including cell proliferation,apoptosis,and metastasis by inhibiting or promoting target gene expression.LncRNAs can also regulate the progression of EC through epithelial-mesenchymal transformation(EMT),which is closely related to the occurrence,development,and prognosis of EC.In this article,we review and discuss the involvement of lncRNAs in the progression of EC.

Hypoxia-induced GBE1 expression promotes tumor progression through metabolic reprogramming in lung adenocarcinoma

Hypoxia mediates a metabolic switch from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis and increases glycogen synthesis.We previously found that glycogen branching enzyme(GBE1)is downstream of the hypoxia-inducible factor-1(HIF1)signaling pathway in lung adenocarcinoma(LUAD)cells;however,the molecular mechanism underlying HIF1 regulation of GBE1 expression remains unknown.Herein,the effect of GBE1 on tumor progression via changes in metabolic signaling under hypoxia in vitro and in vivo was evaluated,and GBE1-related genes from human specimens and data sets were analyzed.Hypoxia induced GBE1 upregulation in LUAD cells.GBE1-knockdown A549 cells showed impaired cell proliferation,clone formation,cell migration and invasion,angiogenesis,tumor growth,and metastasis.GBE1 mediated the metabolic reprogramming of LUAD cells.The expression of gluconeogenesis pathway molecules,especially fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase(FBP1),was markedly higher in shGBE1 A549 cells than it was in the control cells.FBP1 inhibited the tumor progression of LUAD.GBE1-mediated FBP1 suppression via promoter methylation enhanced HIF1αlevels through NF-κB signaling.GBE1 may be a negative prognostic biomarker for LUAD patients.Altogether,hypoxia-induced HIF1αmediated GBE1 upregulation,suppressing FBP1 expression by promoter methylation via NF-κB signaling in LUAD cells.FBP1 blockade upregulated HIF1α,triggered the switch to anaerobic glycolysis,and enhanced glucose uptake.Therefore,targeting HIF1α/GBE1/NF-κB/FBP1 signaling may be a potential therapeutic strategy for LUAD.