MicroRNA-802 promotes the progression of osteosarcoma through targeting p27 and activating PI3K/AKT pathway

Interaction of ncRNAs and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway: Implications for osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor in children and adolescents, and is characterized by high heterogeneity, high malignancy, easy metastasis, and poor prognosis. Recurrence, metastasis, and multidrug resistance are the main problems that limit the therapeutic effect and prognosis of OS. PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway is often abnormally activated in OS tissues and cells, which promotes the rapid development, metastasis, and drug sensitivity of OS. Emerging evidence has revealed new insights into tumorigenesis through the interaction between the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). Therefore, we reviewed the interactions between the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway and ncRNAs and their implication in OS. These interactions have the potential to serve as cancer biomarkers and therapeutic targets in clinical applications.

A pan-cancer analysis for the oncogenic role of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B in human cancers

BACKGROUND

Human health and life are threatened by cancer with high morbidity and mortality worldwide. In many experiments, CDKN1B level is associated with cancer risk, Nevertheless, no pan-cancer analysis has been conducted on CDKN1B in human cancers.

METHODS

With the help of bioinformatics, a pan-cancer analysis was conducted on the expression levels of CDKN1B in cancer tissues and adjacent tissues from the TCGA, CPTAC and GEO databases. The CDKN1B expression levels in tumor patients was further validated using immunohistochemistry (IHC) and quantitative real-time PCR.

RESULTS

In the study, we first investigated the cancer-related roles of CDKN1B's in 40 tumors with malignancy. The CDKN1B gene encodes the p27^Kip1 protein, which can block the production cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK), which is obviously related to the function and survival of cancer cells and alters the prognosis of cancer patients. Furthermore, CDKN1B function requires both protein processing and RNA metabolism. Additionally, the elevated expression of the CDKN1B gene and protein was validated in several cancer tissues from the patients.

CONCLUSIONS

These results showed that the levels of CDKN1B were considerably different in a number of cancer tissues, offering a potential future target for cancer therapy.

Functional role of MicroRNA/PI3K/AKT axis in osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma (OS) is a primary malignant bone tumor that occurs in children and adolescents, and the PI3K/AKT pathway is overactivated in most OS patients. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are highly conserved endogenous non-protein-coding RNAs that can regulate gene expression by repressing mRNA translation or degrading mRNA. MiRNAs are enriched in the PI3K/AKT pathway, and aberrant PI3K/AKT pathway activation is involved in the development of osteosarcoma. There is increasing evidence that miRNAs can regulate the biological functions of cells by regulating the PI3K/AKT pathway. MiRNA/PI3K/AKT axis can regulate the expression of osteosarcoma-related genes and then regulate cancer progression. MiRNA expression associated with PI3K/AKT pathway is also clearly associated with many clinical features. In addition, PI3K/AKT pathway-associated miRNAs are potential biomarkers for osteosarcoma diagnosis, treatment and prognostic assessment. This article reviews recent research advances on the role and clinical application of PI3K/AKT pathway and miRNA/PI3K/AKT axis in the development of osteosarcoma.

RNF7 inhibits apoptosis and sunitinib sensitivity and promotes glycolysis in renal cell carcinoma via the SOCS1/JAK/STAT3 feedback loop

Background

RING finger protein 7 (RNF7) is a highly conserved protein that functions as an E3 ubiquitin ligase. RNF7 overexpression is indicated in multiple human cancers, but its role in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and the mechanisms underlying how it regulates the initiation and progression of RCC have not been explored.

Methods

Bioinformatics analysis, quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and Western blot were conducted to determine the expression of RNF7 in RCC tissues and cell lines. Knockdown and overexpression experiments were performed to examine the effects of RNF7 on cell viability, apoptosis, and glycolysis in vitro and on tumor growth in nude mice in vivo.

Results

The elevated RNF7 expression in tumor tissues of patients with RCC was correlated with poor survival. RNF7 overexpression inhibited apoptosis and promoted glycolysis in vitro and increased tumor growth in vivo by activating the JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway by ubiquitination of SOCS1. Moreover, RNF7 overexpression affected the sensitivity of RCC cells to sunitinib. Finally, STAT3 activation was necessary for transcriptional induction of RNF7.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate that RNF7 inhibited apoptosis, promoted glycolysis, and inhibited sunitinib sensitivity in RCC cells via ubiquitination of SOCS1, thus activating STAT3 signaling. These suggest the potential for targeting the RNF7-SOCS1/JAK/STAT3 pathway for RCC treatment.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s11658-022-00337-5.