Effect of LINC00665 on hepatocellular carcinoma cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion by targeting miR-379-5p

Objective To investigate the effect and mechanism of LINC00665 on hepatocellular carcinoma cell proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis. Methods From June 2013 to June 2018, 126 liver cancer tissue and adjacent tissue (more than 2 cm from the edge of liver cancer tissue) specimens were collected in the Third People's Hospital of Jinan, 86 male and 40 female were included, aged 25.0-72.0 (48.2±9.9) years. The expression level of LINC00665 in 126 liver cancer tissues and adjacent tissues were detected by qRT-PCR. The survival rate of hepatocellular carcinoma HCC9204 cells was determined by CCK8 assay. The apoptosis of HCC9204 cells was detected by flow cytometry, cell migration and invasion were detected by Transwell assay. And the dual-luciferase reporter assay system was implemented to investigate the correlations between LINC00665 and miR-379-5p. Results Compared with the adjacent tissues group, the expression level of LINC00665 in liver cancer tissues group was increased (1.00±0.10 vs. 1.82±0.18), with statistically significant difference (P 0.05); The level of miR-379-5p in the LINC00665 overexpression group (pcDNA3.1-LINC00665) was decreased [(1.01±0.10) vs (0.37±0.04)]; but was increased in the LINC00665 inhibition group (si-LINC00665)[(0.98±0.10) vs (1.66±0.17)], with statistically significant differences (P<0.05); Decreasing the content of LINC00665 and miR-379-5p, The cell survival rate was increased [(46.53±4.72)% vs. (82.26±8.34)%], the apoptosis rate was decreased (23.51±2.44)% vs. (12.07±1.21)%], and the number of migrating cells and invasive cells were increased [(54±6) vs. (92±9); (48±5) vs. (88±9)] when LINC00665 and miR-379-5p were inhibited the difference were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusions In hepatocellular carcinoma HCC9204, LINC00665 targets the regulation of miR-379-5p expression, thereby regulating the proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma HCC9204, which is a potential molecular target for liver cancer. Key words: Liver neoplasms; MiR-379-5p; Proliferation; Migration; Invasion; Apoptosis