The long non-coding RNA NEAT1 interacted with miR-101 modulates breast cancer growth by targeting EZH2

Nuclear enriched abundant transcript 1 (NEAT1), an important cancer-associated long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), contributes to the development and progression of several cancers. An increased expression of NEAT1 was observed in cancers including bladder cancer, lung cancer and breast cancer (BC). However, the exact effect of NEAT1 in BC progression and the underlying molecular mechanisms are still unknown up to now. Here, we investigated the detailed role of NEAT1 in human BC cell lines and clinical tumor samples in order to validate the function of this molecule. In our research, lncRNA-NEAT1 was specifically upregulated in BC cell lines and promoted BC cell growth through targeting miR-101. Knockdown of NEAT1 inhibited the proliferation and DNA synthesis of human BC cell in vitro. In addition, the regulation of EZH2 by miR-101 was required in NEAT1 induced BC cell growth. These findings indicated that NEAT1 might suppress the tumor growth via miR-101 dependent EZH2 regulation. Taken together, our data indicated that NEAT1 might be an oncogenic lncRNA that promoted proliferation of BC and could be regarded as a therapeutic target in human BC.