LINC01939 inhibits the metastasis of gastric cancer by acting as a molecular sponge of miR-17-5p to regulate EGR2 expression

Accumulating evidence have suggested that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are known to regulate diverse tumorigenic processes. Recently, a novel lncRNA LINC01939 was underexpressed and emerged as a tumor suppressive lncRNA in gastric cancer (GC). In this study, we aimed to investigate the biological function and molecular mechanism of LINC01939 in GC. We found that LINC01939 expression was significantly downregulated in GC tissues and cell lines. Low expression of LINC01939 was correlated with tumor metastasis and shorter survival in GC patients. Functionally, LINC01939 overexpression remarkably inhibited the invasion and migration of GC cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, LINC01939 regulated the expression of early growth response 2 (EGR2) protein by competitively binding to miR-17-5p. Upregulation of miR-17-5p reversed GC metastasis and EMT process caused by LINC01939 by rescue analysis. Taken together, these results suggested that LINC01939 repressed GC invasion and migration by functioning as a ceRNA for miR-17-5p to regulate EGR2 expression. Our findings provided a novel prognostic marker and therapeutic target for GC patients.