NEAT1 negatively regulates miR-218 expression and promotes breast cancer progression

Studies have shown that lncRNA nuclear paraspeckle assembly transcript 1 (NEAT1) is related to breast cancer progression, however, the role of NEAT1 remains largely unknown. The aim of the current study was to further investigate the function of NEAT1 involved in breast cancer.

QRT-PCR was used to analyze lncRNA NEAT1 expression in breast cancer tissues and determine the association between NEAT1 and clinicopathologic features in patients. Kaplan-Meier analysis and the log-rank test were used to establish the relationship between NEAT1 and overall survival. Cell proliferation and invasion were evaluated based on CCK8 cell proliferation, cell colony formation and Transwell cell invasion assays results. Bioinformatics analysis and the luciferase reporter assay were performed to demonstrate the association between NEAT1 and miR-218.

NEAT1 expression was significantly up-regulated in breast cancer tissues compared to adjacent normal tissues, and higher NEAT1 was positively associated with lymph node metastasis and TNM stage. Patients with higher NEAT1 had a poor prognosis. Furthermore, miR-218 was shown to be a direct target of NEAT1 in breast cancer cells. In addition, NEAT1 promoted cell invasion and proliferation by negatively regulating miR-218 in breast cancer.

NEAT1 is a potential biomarker for prognosis and the target of treatment in breast cancer patients.