Long noncoding RNA LBX2-AS1 drives the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma by sponging microRNA-384 and thereby positively regulating IRS1 expression.

A long noncoding RNA called LBX2 antisense RNA 1 (LBX2-AS1) has been reported to exert crucial regulatory actions in multiple human cancer types. Nonetheless, the role of LBX2-AS1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not yet been elucidated. Our aim was to determine this role. Reverse-transcription quantitative PCR was conducted to measure LBX2-AS1 expression in HCC. A CCK-8 assay, flow cytometry, Transwell migration and invasion assays, and a xenograft mouse model were employed to determine the impact of LBX2-AS1 on the malignant behavior of HCC cells. Bioinformatics analysis followed by a luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation assay, reverse-transcription quantitative PCR, and western blotting illustrated the mechanisms by which LBX2-AS1 affects the progression of HCC. Herein, expression of LBX2-AS1 was increased in HCC tissues and cell lines. The upregulation of LBX2-AS1 significantly correlated with the tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage and lymph node metastasis in 45 HCC patients. Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that the upregulation of LBX2-AS1 significantly correlated with shorter overall survival of HCC patients. Functional analyses revealed that knockdown of LBX2-AS1 in HCC cells attenuated their proliferation, migration, and invasion, and induced their apoptosis in vitro and slowed their tumor growth in vivo. Additionally, LBX2-AS1 was found to act as a competing endogenous RNA of microRNA-384 (miR-384), thereby upregulating IRS1. Moreover, miR-384 inhibition weakened the effects of LBX2-AS1 knockdown on HCC cells. The LBX2-AS1-miR-384-IRS1 pathway may be a promising prognostic biomarker and/or a therapeutic target in HCC.

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