Circ_0005050 promotes the proliferation of oral squamous cell carcinoma and inhibits the apoptosis by activating JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway

Chunming Huang; Haosen Li; Leilei Zhou; Dianqi Li

doi:10.1016/j.prp.2022.154058

Circ_0005050 promotes the proliferation of oral squamous cell carcinoma and inhibits the apoptosis by activating JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway

Pathol Res Pract. 2022 Oct:238:154058. doi: 10.1016/j.prp.2022.154058. Epub 2022 Aug 4.

Authors

Chunming Huang¹, Haosen Li¹, Leilei Zhou¹, Dianqi Li²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, Hubei, China.
² Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, Hubei, China. Electronic address: diansui29595851@163.com.

PMID: 36155326
DOI: 10.1016/j.prp.2022.154058

Abstract

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most predominant type of oral cancer, featured with poor prognosis and high mortality. Circular RNA (circRNA) exerts its function in a variety of human cancers, including OSCC. Circ_0005050, as a novel circRNA, has not been well explored in OSCC so far. This study centered on investigating the impact of circ_0005050 on OSCC cell growth and its molecular mechanism. RNA or protein expression was detected by RT-qPCR or western blot analysis. Functional assays were employed to uncover the changes of OSCC cell biological behaviors. Mechanistic assays were done to verify the underlying mechanism of circ_0005050 in OSCC cells. According to the collected data, circ_0005050 was significantly up-regulated in OSCC cells compared to normal cells. Circ_0005050 depletion hampered proliferative ability of OSCC cells while promoting cell apoptotic ability. As for mechanism analyses, circ_0005050 knockdown led to the reduction of STAT3 expression and JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway activity. Moreover, circ_0005050 competitively bound to miR-23a-3p and miR-625-5p to up-regulate STAT3, thus prompting malignant behaviors of OSCC cells. In conclusion, circ_0005050 regulates miR-23a-3p/miR-625-5p/STAT3 axis to activate JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway, consequently facilitating OSCC cell proliferation and inhibiting cell apoptosis.

Keywords: Circ_0005050; JAK/STAT3; MiR-23a-3p; MiR-625–5p; Oral squamous cell carcinoma.