Retracted Article: lncRNA TINCR sponges miR-214-5p to upregulate ROCK1 in hepatocellular carcinoma

LncSNHG1 Promoted CRC Proliferation through the miR-181b-5p/SMAD2 Axis

Objective

To investigate the effects of LncRNA SNHG1 on the proliferation, migration, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of colorectal cancer cells (CRCs).

Methods

4 pairs of CRC tissue samples and their corresponding adjacent samples were analyzed by the human LncRNA microarray chip. The expression of LncSNHG1 in CRC cell lines was verified by qRT-PCR. Colony formation assays and CCK8 assays were applied to study the changes in cell proliferation. The transwell assay and wound healing experiments were used to verify the cell invasion and migration. EMT progression was confirmed finally.

Results

LncSNHG1 was overexpressed both in CRC tissues and cell lines, while the miR-181b-5p expression was decreased in CRC cell lines. After knock-down of LncSNHG1, the proliferation, invasion, and migration of HT29 and SW620 cells were all decreased. Meanwhile, LncSNHG1 enhanced EMT progress through regulation of the miR-181b-5p/SMAD2 axis.

Conclusion

LncSNHG1 promotes colorectal cancer cell proliferation and invasion through the miR-181b-5p/SMAD2 axis.

LncRNA TINCR improves cardiac hypertrophy by regulating the miR-211-3p-VEGFB-SDF-1α-CXCR4 pathway

Cardiac hypertrophy is a common cardiovascular disease that is found worldwide and is characterized by heart enlargement, eventually resulting in heart failure. Exploring the regulatory mechanism of cardiac hypertrophy is beneficial for understanding its pathogenesis and treatment. In our study, we have showed TINCR was downregulated and miR-211-3p was upregulated in TAC- or Ang II-induced models of cardiac hypertrophy. Dual luciferase and RIP assays revealed that TINCR served as a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-211-3p. Then, we observed that knockdown of miR-211-3p alleviated TAC- or Ang II-induced cardiac hypertrophy both in vivo and in vitro. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that miR-211-3p directly targeted VEGFB and thus regulated the expression of SDF-1α and CXCR4. Rescue assays further confirmed that TINCR suppressed the progression of cardiac hypertrophy by competitively binding to miR-211-3p, thereby enhancing the expression of VEGFB and activating the VEGFB-SDF-1α- CXCR4 signal. Furthermore, overexpression of TINCR suppressed TAC-induced cardiac hypertrophy in vivo by targeting miR-211-3p-VEGFB-SDF-1α- CXCR4 signalling. In conclusion, our research suggests that LncRNA TINCR improves cardiac hypertrophy by targeting miR-211-3p, thus relieving its suppressive effects on the VEGFB-SDF-1α-CXCR4 signalling axis. TINCR and miR-211-3p might act as therapeutic targets for the treatment of cardiac hypertrophy.

Protective effects of dexmedetomidine on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury via the microRNA-214/ROCK1/NF-κB axis

BACKGROUND

Cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury (CIRI) is a complication of surgical procedure associated with high mortality. The protective effect of dexmedetomidine (DEX) on CIRI has been explored in previous works, yet the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. Our study explored the protective effect of DEX and its regulatory mechanism on CIRI.

METHODS

A CIRI rat model was established using middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Neurological deficit scores for rats received MCAO modeling or DEX treatment were measured. Cerebral infarction area of rats was detected by TTC staining, while damage of neurons in hippocampal regions of rats was determined by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. Apoptosis rate of neurons in hippocampal regions was examined by TUNEL staining. The dual-luciferase assay was performed to detect the binding of microRNA-214 (miR-214) to Rho-associated kinase 1 (ROCK1).

RESULTS

DEX treatment significantly reduced infarction area of MCAO rats and elevated miR-214 expression. Injection of miR-214 inhibitor attenuated the effect of DEX in MCAO rats by increasing the area of cerebral infarction in rats and apoptosis rate of hippocampal neurons. ROCK1 was targeted and negatively regulated by miR-214. The overexpression of ROCK1 led to activation of NF-κB to aggravate CIRI.

CONCLUSION

Therapeutic effects of DEX on CIRI was elicited by overexpressing miR-214 and impairing ROCK1 expression and NF-κB activation. Our finding might provide novel insights into the molecular mechanism of DEX in rats with CIRI.

Long non-coding RNA TINCR promotes hepatocellular carcinoma proliferation and invasion via STAT3 signaling by direct interacting with T-cell protein tyrosine phosphatase (TCPTP)

The long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) participate in modulating numerous important cancer phenotypes via formation of RNA-protein complex. TINCR (terminal differentiation-induced lncRNA) modulates cancer cell behavior in many human malignancies, such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Herein, we proposed to investigate the underlying mechanism by which TINCR regulates HCC progression via formation of RNA-protein. RNA pulldown, LC-MS/MS, bioinformatics analysis, and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assays were employed to identify TINCR-interacting protein TCPTP in HCC cells. The siRNAs for TINCR and TCPTP were transfected into HCC cells. The plasmids encoding full length or the 1–360 nt deletion of TINCR were generated and applied to cell transfection. The CCK-8, colony formation, EdU, wound healing along with transwell assays were employed to examine cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and infiltration. Real-time PCR, as well as western blot assays were employed to assess the levels of STAT3 phosphorylation and its target genes. We identified 1–360 nt region of TINCR, which directly bound with the phosphatase domain of TCPTP to inhibit its tyrosine phosphatase activity. Then, the results showed that the increasing of cell growth, migration, infiltration, and the reducing of apoptosis in TINCR-knockdown HCC cells was remarkably reversed with TCPTP silence. Additionally, Δ1-360 TINCR overexpression did not affect HCC cell growth, apoptosis, migration, infiltration, and STAT3 target genes expression. Our data revealed that TINCR directly bound TCPTP and suppressed the dephosphorylation of STAT3, thus promoting STAT3 activation and its downstream target genes in HCC progression and tumorigenicity.

Highlights

LncRNA TINCR interacted with protein TCPTP

LncRNA TINCR maintained STAT3 phosphorylation

LncRNA TINCR affected STAT3 signaling in HCC

Abbreviations:

lncRNAs: long non-coding RNAs; TINCR: terminal differentiation-induced lncRNA; TCPTP: T cell protein tyrosine phosphatase; siRNA: small-interfering RNA; HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; nt: nucleotide; LC-MS/MS: Liquid Chromatography - Tandem Mass Spectrometry; RIP: RNA immunoprecipitation; ANOVA: analysis of variance; EdU: 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine; real-time PCR: real-time polymerase chain reaction; CCK-8: cell counting kit-8; aa: amino acids; STAT3: signal transducer and activator of transcription 3

Long non-coding RNA AL139002.1 promotes gastric cancer development by sponging microRNA-490-3p to regulate Hepatitis A Virus Cellular Receptor 1 expression

Mounting evidence suggests that lncRNA regulates many important diseases. However, the biological role of most lncRNAs in gastric cancer (GC) remain unclear. In this paper, we determined differential expression of lncRNAs and predicted ceRNA networks in the GC database by bioinformatics analysis and validated in GC cells. The effect of lncRNA AL139002.1 on GC cells biological function was assessed by flow cytometry, CCK-8, colony formation, wound healing assay, transwell, western blot, and qRT-PCR. And the relationship of lncRNA AL139002.1 or HAVCR1 with miR-490-3p was verified by luciferase reporter assay. The results showed that lncRNA AL139002.1 was highly expressed in GC cells and lncRNA AL139002.1 knockdown induced apoptosis, while suppressed cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and EMT. Functional examining indicated that lncRNA AL139002.1 regulated HAVCR1 expression by competitively binding miR-490-3p. In addition, lncRNA AL139002.1/miR-490-3p/HAVCR1 regulated EMT and metastasis through MEK/ERK signaling. In conclusion, lncRNA AL139002.1 was highly expressed in GC cells, and lncRNA AL139002.1/miR-490-3p/HAVCR1 functioned critically in GC by regulating MEK/ERK signaling. Our findings demonstrated that lncRNA AL139002.1 served as a potential therapeutic and anti-metastatic biotarget for GC.

The Impact of Long Non-Coding RNAs in the Pathogenesis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the utmost deadly human malignancies. This type of cancer has been associated with several environmental, viral, and lifestyle risk factors. Among the epigenetic factors which contribute in the pathogenesis of HCC is dysregulation of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). These transcripts modulate expression of several tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes and alter the activity of cancer-related signaling axes. Several lncRNAs such as NEAT1, MALAT1, ANRIL, and SNHG1 have been up-regulated in HCC samples. On the other hand, a number of so-called tumor suppressor lncRNAs namely CASS2 and MEG3 are down-regulated in HCC. The interaction between lncRNAs and miRNAs regulate expression of a number of mRNA coding genes which are involved in the pathogenesis of HCC. H19/miR-15b/CDC42, H19/miR-326/TWIST1, NEAT1/miR-485/STAT3, MALAT1/miR-124-3p/Slug, MALAT1/miR-195/EGFR, MALAT1/miR-22/SNAI1, and ANRIL/miR-144/PBX3 axes are among functional axes in the pathobiology of HCC. Some genetic polymorphisms within non-coding regions of the genome have been associated with risk of HCC in certain populations. In the current paper, we describe the recent finding about the impact of lncRNAs in HCC.

miR-214-5p targeted by LncRNA DANCR mediates TGF-β signaling pathway to accelerate proliferation, migration and inhibit apoptosis of prostate cancer cells

OBJECTIVE

This research was designed to probe into the regulatory mechanism of long non-coding RNA (LncRNA) differentiation antagonizing non-protein coding RNA (DANCR) in potential applications and molecular mechanisms of prostate carcinoma (PC).

METHODS

The DANCR and miR-214-5p levels in PC tissues and cell lines were tested via real-time PCR, and those of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signaling pathway related proteins were evaluated via Western Blot (WB). Cell proliferation, migration, apoptosis and the regulatory relationship between target genes were assessed via MTT method, scratch test, flow cytometry, dual-luciferase report, RNA co-immunoprecipitation and RNA pull-down test, respectively.

RESULTS

DANCR was up-regulated in PC patients' serum and cell lines, while miR-214-5p was opposite, showing negative correlation. Besides, DANCR was significantly correlated with PSA, Gleason score and T stage in PC patients. The area under the curve (AUC) of DANCR and miR-214-5p for diagnosing PC was not less than 0.850, while the AUC for predicting poor prognosis was more than 0.800. Cox analysis results also revealed that the two might be prognostic indicators of PC patients. We found that DANCR high levels or miR-214-5p low levels were related to PC patients' poor prognosis. Up-regulating DANCR or down-regulating miR-214-5p could promote PC cells' malignant proliferation and migration, prevent apoptosis, and activate TGF-β signaling pathway, while reverse treatment of DANCR or miR-214-5p can reverse the above results. DANCR regulates miR-214-5p in a targeted manner, and DANCR over-expression can reduce the cancer inhibitory effect of miR-214-5p on PC cells.

CONCLUSION

DANCR-miR-214-5p-TGF-β axis regulatory network plays a key regulatory part in PC progression. It may provide new strategies for the screening and treatment of patients.

miR-135a inhibits malignant proliferation and diffusion of non-small cell lung cancer cells by down-regulating ROCK1 protein

Objective: To seek the clinical significance and regulatory mechanism of miR-135a and Rho-associated protein kinase 1 (ROCK1) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: NSCLC cells were purchased, and miR-135a-mimics, miR-135a-inhibitor, miR-NC, si-ROCK1 and Sh-ROCK1 were transfected into NSCLC cells HCC827 and NCI-H524. qRT-PCR and Western blot were used to detect the expression of miR-135a, ROCK1, Bax, Caspase3, Bcl-2, N-cadherin, vimentin and E-cadherin. MTT, scratch test, Transwell and flow cytometry were used to analyze the cell proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis.

Results: miR-135a was low expressed in serum of NSCLC group, while ROCK1 was opposite. miR-135a low level or ROCK1 high level was associated with poor prognosis of NSCLC and lower 3-year OS. Over-expression of miR-135a and inhibition of ROCK1 expression could control malignant growth and diffusion of cells and expression of Bcl-2, N-cadherin and vimentin proteins, and promote apoptosis and expression of Bax, Caspase3 and E-cadherin proteins. After transfection of miR-135a-mimics+sh-ROCK1 to HCC827 and NCI-H524, the malignant proliferation and diffusion behavior of the cells were not different from those of the miR-NC group with no transfection sequence. The double luciferase report revealed that miR-135a has a targeting relationship with ROCK1.

Conclusion: miR-135a is abnormally down-regulated in NSCLC. As a serum indicator, miR-135a has the potential to diagnose NSCLC and predict prognosis. The up-regulated expression of miR-135a protein can down-regulate the ROCK1 protein, inhibit the malignant proliferation, migration, invasion, EMT and other diffusion behaviors of NSCLC cells, and increase the apoptosis ability of cells.

Overview of host miRNA properties and their association with epigenetics, long non-coding RNAs, and Xeno-infectious factors

MicroRNA-derived structures play impressive roles in various biological processes. So dysregulation of miRNAs can lead to different human diseases. Recent studies have extended our comprehension of the control of miRNA function and features. Here, we overview some remarkable miRNA properties that have potential implications for the miRNA functions, including different variants of a miRNA called isomiRs, miRNA arm selection/arm switching, and the effect of these factors on miRNA target selection. Besides, we review some aspects of miRNA interactions such as the interaction between epigenetics and miRNA (different miRNAs and their related processing enzymes are epigenetically regulated by multiple DNA methylation enzymes. moreover, DNA methylation could be controlled by diverse mechanisms related to miRNAs), direct and indirect crosstalk between miRNA and lnc (Long Non-Coding) RNAs as a further approach to conduct intercellular regulation called "competing endogenous RNA" (ceRNA) that is involved in the pathogenesis of different diseases, and the interaction of miRNA activities and some Xeno-infectious (virus/bacteria/parasite) factors, which result in modulation of the pathogenesis of infections. This review provides some related studies to a better understanding of miRNA involvement mechanisms and overcoming the complexity of related diseases that may be applicable and useful to prognostic, diagnostic, therapeutic purposes and personalized medicine in the future.

Silencing ZEB2 Induces Apoptosis and Reduces Viability in Glioblastoma Cell Lines

Background: Glioma is an aggressive type of brain tumor that originated from neuroglia cells, accounts for about 80% of all malignant brain tumors. Glioma aggressiveness has been associated with extreme cell proliferation, invasion of malignant cells, and resistance to chemotherapies. Due to resistance to common therapies, glioma affected patients’ survival has not been remarkably improved. ZEB2 (SIP1) is a critical transcriptional regulator with various functions during embryonic development and wound healing that has abnormal expression in different malignancies, including brain tumors. ZEB2 overexpression in brain tumors is attributed to an unfavorable state of the malignancy. Therefore, we aimed to investigate some functions of ZEB2 in two different glioblastoma U87 and U373 cell lines. Methods: In this study, we investigated the effect of ZEB2 knocking down on the apoptosis, cell cycle, cytotoxicity, scratch test of the two malignant brain tumor cell lines U87 and U373. Besides, we investigated possible proteins and microRNA, SMAD2, SMAD5, and miR-214, which interact with ZEB2 via in situ analysis. Then we evaluated candidate gene expression after ZEB2-specific knocking down. Results: We found that ZEB2 suppression induced apoptosis in U87 and U373 cell lines. Besides, it had cytotoxic effects on both cell lines and reduced cell migration. Cell cycle analysis showed cell cycle arrest in G0/G1 and apoptosis induction in U87 and U373 cell lines receptively. Also, we have found that SAMAD2/5 expression was reduced after ZEB2-siRNA transfection and miR-214 upregulated after transfection. Conclusions: In line with previous investigations, our results indicated a critical oncogenic role for ZEB2 overexpression in brain glioma tumors. These properties make ZEB2 an essential molecule for further studies in the treatment of glioma cancer.

lncRNA TINCR SNPs and Expression Levels Are Associated with Bladder Cancer Susceptibility

Objective: The long-chain noncoding RNA (lncRNA) TINCR has been associated with the development and progression of bladder cancer. In this study, we analyzed the correlation between lncRNA TINCR single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and bladder cancer susceptibility risk. Methods: The genotypes of the lncRNA TINCR rs2288947 and rs8113645 loci in 125 surgically treated bladder cancer patients and 125 controls were analyzed by Sanger sequencing. A dual-luciferase reporter gene assay was used to detect the binding of the microRNAs miR-1247-3p and miR-30c-2-3p with the lncRNA TINCR. The receiver operating characteristic curve was used to analyze the value of expression levels of the lncRNA TINCR and the microRNAs miR-1247-3p and miR-30c-2-3p in the diagnosis of bladder cancer. Results: The bladder cancer susceptibility risk of the rs2288947 G allele carriers was 2.32 times higher compared with the A allele carriers (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.58-3.42, p < 0.01); The bladder cancer susceptibility risk of the rs8113645 T allele carriers was 0.33 times compared with the C allele carriers (95% CI: 0.19-0.55, p < 0.01). lncRNA TINCR was more highly expressed in bladder cancer tissues than controls (p < 0.01). The lncRNA TINCR rs2288947 A>G variation was associated with increased expression of lncRNA TINCR in bladder cancer tissues, and the rs8113645 C > T was associated with decreased expression. The expression levels of the lncRNA TINCR in cancer and paracancerous tissues showed a significant negative correlation with that of miR-1247-3p and miR-30c-2-3p (r = -0.89, -0.78, -0.81, and -0.66, all p < 0.01). The dual-luciferase reporter gene assay results indicate that the lncRNA TINCR rs2288947 G allele is the target of miR-1247-3p, and the rs8113645 C allele is the target of miR-30c-2-3p. Conclusion: The lncRNA TINCR rs2288947 A>G is associated with increased bladder cancer risk and rs8113645 C > T is associated with decreased susceptibility. These two SNP loci are associated with lncRNA TINCR expression levels; however, further studies are needed for validation.

Epigenetic Associations between lncRNA/circRNA and miRNA in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Simple Summary

Non-coding RNAs such as microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs, and circular RNAs contribute to the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma through epigenetic association. Long non-coding RNAs and circular RNAs act as competing endogenous RNAs that contain binding sites for miRNAs and thus compete with the miRNAs, which results in promotion of miRNA target gene expression, thereby leading to proliferation and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma. Competing endogenous RNAs have the potential to become diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Abstract

The three major members of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), named microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs), play an important role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. Recently, the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulation model described lncRNA/circRNA as a sponge for miRNAs to indirectly regulate miRNA downstream target genes. Accumulating evidence has indicated that ceRNA regulatory networks are associated with biological processes in HCC, including cancer cell growth, epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), metastasis, and chemoresistance. In this review, we summarize recent discoveries, which are specific ceRNA regulatory networks (lncRNA/circRNA-miRNA-mRNA) in HCC and discuss their clinical significance.

Recent progress in treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. In the past decade, there have been improvements in non-drug therapies and drug therapies for HCC treatment. Non-drug therapies include hepatic resection, liver transplantation, transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) and ablation. The former two surgical treatments are beneficial for patients with early and mid-stage HCC. As the first choice for non-surgical treatment, different TACE methods has been developed and widely used in combination therapy. Ablation has become an important alternative therapy for the treatment of small HCC or cases of unresectable surgery. Meanwhile, the drugs including small molecule targeted drugs like sorafenib and lenvatinib, monoclonal antibodies such as nivolumab are mainly used for the systematic treatment of advanced HCC. Besides strategies described above are recommended as first-line therapies due to their significant increase in mean overall survival, there are also potential drugs in clinical trials or under preclinical development. In addition, a number of potential preclinical surgical or adjuvant therapies are being studied, such as oncolytic virus, mesenchymal stem cells, biological clock, gut microbiome composition and peptide vaccine, all of which have shown different degrees of inhibition on HCC. With some potential anti-HCC drugs being reported, many promising therapeutic targets in related taxonomic signaling pathways including cell cycle, epigenetics, tyrosine kinase and so on that affect the progression of HCC have also been found. Together, the rational application of existing therapies and drugs as well as the new strategies will bring a bright future for the global cure of HCC in the coming decades.

TINCR: An lncRNA with dual functions in the carcinogenesis process

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have prominent roles in the pathogenesis of human cancers. Several studies have shown oncogenic or tumor suppressor roles of lncRNAs in different human tissues. Thus, these transcripts have been regarded as putative targets in treatment of cancer. The lncRNA terminal differentiation-induced non-coding RNA (TINCR) has an especial position in this regard, as it exerts different opposite roles in the pathogenesis of different human cancers. While it is up-regulated in gastric, esophageal, bladder and breast cancer; it is down-regulated in glioma, retinoblastoma and prostate cancer. Notably, data regarding expression profile of this lncRNA in a number of human cancers such as colon cancer, squamous cell carcinoma, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are controversial. Expression level of this lncRNA has been associated with clinical outcome in patients with gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, NSCLC and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Moreover, Kaplan-Meier analyses have shown correlation between expression levels of TINCR and patients survival in patients with lung cancer and HCC. A number of cellular pathways such as Wnt/β-catenin, ERK1/2‐SP3 and MAPK signaling pathways have been identified as targets of this lncRNA in different cancers. Moreover, the rs8113645, rs2288947 and rs8105637 within this lncRNA have been associated with risk of gastric and colorectal cancer. In conclusion, although the role of TINCR in the carcinogenesis is essential, based on the conflicting data regarding the direction of effect of this lncRNA, therapeutic targeting of this lncRNA is a complicated issue which should be considered in a tissue-specific or even individualized manner.

miR‑589‑3p sponged by the lncRNA TINCR inhibits the proliferation, migration and invasion and promotes the apoptosis of breast cancer cells by suppressing the Akt pathway via IGF1R

The long non-coding (lnc)RNA named tissue differentiation inducing non-protein coding RNA (TINCR) is a tumor marker that has not been studied in breast cancer. The present study aimed to investigate the TINCR-targeting micro (mi)RNAs and the regulatory mechanisms of TINCR in breast cancer. Following prediction by TargetScan and confirmation by dual-luciferase reporter assay, TINCR was demonstrated to be a target gene for miR-589-3p. The expression of TINCR and miR-589-3p in breast cancer and adjacent tissues was detected by reverse transcription-quantitative (RT-q)PCR, and the correlation between TINCR and miR-589-3p expression was determined by using Spearman correlation analysis. The 5-years survival was analyzed in patients with breast cancer according to TINCR expression (high or low). The effects of TINCR and miR-589-3p on the proliferation, apoptosis, migratory and invasive abilities of some breast cancer cell lines were detected by MTT assay, flow cytometry, wound healing assay and Transwell assay. The target gene of miR-589-3p was predicted and verified by TargetScan and dual-luciferase reporter assay, and the mechanism of miR-589-3p involvement in breast cancer cells was explored by overexpression or downregulation of miR-589-3p in breast cancer cells. RT-qPCR and western blotting were used to determine the expression of the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R)/AKT pathway-related genes. The results demonstrated that TINCR expression level was negatively correlated with miR-589-3p expression level in breast cancer tissues and that patients with high expression of TINCR presented with lower survival rates. In addition, TINCR overexpression in cancer cells inhibited miR-589-3p expression, and cell transfection with miR-589-3p mimic partially reversed the effect of TINCR overexpression on the promotion of cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and on the inhibition of cancer cell apoptosis. Furthermore, IGF1R, which is a target gene of miR-589-3p, increased cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion and inhibited cancer cell apoptosis; however, these effects were partially reversed by miR-589-3p mimic. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that miR-589-3p mimic could downregulate the protein expression of IGF1R and p-AKT. In addition, TINCR overexpression downregulated miR-589-3p expression level. miR-589-3p partially reversed the effects of TINCR overexpression on cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and inhibited cancer cell apoptosis by inhibiting the IGF1R-Akt pathway. The results from the present study demonstrated that TINCR may sponge miR-589-3p in order to inhibit IGF1R-Akt pathway activation in breast cancer cells, promoting therefore cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion.