As a new rising star of non-coding RNA, circular RNAs (circRNAs) emerged as vital regulators with biological functions in diverse of cancers. However, the function and precise mechanism of the vast majority of circRNAs in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) occurrence and progression have not been clearly elucidated. In the current study, we identified and further investigated hsa_circ_0002453 (circRAD18) by analyzing our previous microarray profiling. Expression of circRAD18 was found significantly upregulated in TNBC compared with normal mammary tissues and cell lines. circRAD18 was positively correlated with T stage, clinical stage and pathological grade and was an independent risk factor for TNBC patients. We performed proliferation, colony formation, cell migration, apoptosis and mouse xenograft assays to verify the functions of circRAD18. Knockdown of circRAD18 significantly suppressed cell proliferation and migration, promoted cell apoptosis and inhibited tumor growth in functional and xenograft experiments. Through luciferase reporter assays, we confirmed that circRAD18 acts as a sponge of miR-208a and miR-3164 and promotes TNBC progression through upregulating IGF1 and FGF2 expression. Altogether, our research revealed the pivotal role of circRAD18-miR-208a/3164-IGF1/FGF2 axis in TNBC tumorigenesis and metastasis though the mechanism of competing endogenous RNAs. Thus, circRAD18 may serve as a novel prognostic biomarker and potential target for TNBC treatment in the future.
© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press.