CircRNA_0023642 promotes migration and invasion of gastric cancer cells by regulating EMT.

OBJECTIVE: Non-coding circular RNAs (circRNAs) have displayed dysregulated expression in various tumor tissues. However, their role in the progression of cancers remains largely unknown. We aimed at examining the expression, functions, and molecular mechanisms of a new circRNA (circRNA_0023642) in gastric cancer (GC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS: We evaluated the expression levels of circRNA_0023642 in GC tissues, adjacent normal tissues and cells lines using qRT-PCR. The functional roles of circRNA_0023642 in GC were determined by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, colony formation assay, transwell assay, and flow cytometric analysis. Western blot was used to analyze the effect of circRNA_0023642 on the expression of EMT-related proteins.

RESULTS: We found that circRNA_0023642 was upregulated in GC tissues and cell lines. Functionally, down-regulation of circRNA_0023642 displayed the tumor-inhibitory effects by suppressing cell proliferation, migration, and invasion as well as inducing apoptosis. Mechanically, our results revealed that the abnormal expression of circRNA_0023642 could influence the EMT signaling pathway, which was demonstrated by measuring the expression levels of N-cadherin, vimentin snail, and E-cadherin.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that circRNA_0023642 serves as a metastasis activator by promoting EMT and may represent a novel molecular therapeutic target for GC.