AUTHOR=Zhai Duanyang , Li Tianfu , Ye Runyi , Bi Jiong , Kuang Xiaying , Shi Yawei , Shao Nan , Lin Ying 

TITLE=LncRNA LGALS8-AS1 Promotes Breast Cancer Metastasis Through miR-125b-5p/SOX12 Feedback Regulatory Network

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2021.711684

DOI=10.3389/fonc.2021.711684

ISSN=2234-943X

ABSTRACT=Background: Metastasis is a major factor weaking the long-term survival of breast cancer. An increasing evidence revealed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in the occurrence and development of breast cancer. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of LGALS8-AS1 in the metastasis progression in breast cancer cells and its potential mechanisms.
Results: Here, we showed that lncRNA LGALS8-AS1 was highly expressed in breast cancer and associated with poor survival. LGALS8-AS1 functioned as an oncogenic LncRNA that promoted metastasis of breast cancer both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, LGALS8-AS1 upregulated Sex determining region Y-box 12 (SOX12) via competing as a ceRNA for sponging miR-125b-5p, and acted the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway to promote the metastasis of breast cancer. Furthermore, SOX12 in turn activated LGALS8-AS1 expression via direct recognition of its sequence binding enrichment (SBE) motif on the LGALS8-AS1 promoter, thereby forming a positive feedback regulatory loop. 
Conclusion: This study manifested a novel mechanism that LGALS8-AS1 facilitated the metastasis of breast cancer through a potential ceRNA regulatory pathway and might be a potential target for therapeutical applicable in clinic.