Small nucleolar RNA 42 facilitates the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma through PI3K/Akt signaling pathway

Small nucleolar RNAs may serve as new potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of liver cancer. The purpose of our study was to reveal the mechanism small nucleolar RNA 42 (SNORA42) affects the proliferation and migration of liver cancer cells. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was performed to detect the expression of SNORA42 and its host gene. Cell proliferation and migration were measured using the CCK-8 and Transwell assays, respectively. Western blotting was performed to measure the expression of the proteins affected by SNORA42. SNORA42 overexpression could reinforce the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells, and promote the migration of hepatocellular carcinoma cells. In addition, SNORA42 did not affect the expression of host genes KIAA0907. SNORA42 is one of the most important components of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. SNORA42 augmented phospho-Akt expression, which was reversed by PI3K and Akt inhibitors. Our study displayed that SNORA42 may affect the proliferation and migration of HCC cells by interfering with the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Thus, SNORA42 may be a new target for detecting or treating HCC.