Circular RNA Circ-ZNF609 Promotes Lung Adenocarcinoma Proliferation by Modulating miR-1224-3p/ETV1 Signaling

BACKGROUND: Circ-ZNF609 has been shown to modulate cancer progression in several kinds of cancer. However, the role of circ-ZNF609 played in lung adenocarcinoma (LAUD) remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of circ-ZNF609 in regulating LAUD cancer progression. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction was conducted to evaluate circ‐ZNF609 expression in 52 LAUD tissues and 52 matched adjacent normal tissues, LAUD cell lines and bronchial epithelial cell line (HBE). The direct interaction between miR-1224-3p and circ-ZNF609 or EVT1 was verified using luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. Cell Counting Kit-8, colony formation assay, cell-cycle analysis were utilized to examine the effect of circ-ZNF609 or miR-1224-3p on cell proliferation. RESULTS: Circ-ZNF609 was significantly upregulated in LAUD tissues and cell lines, and its inhibition induced reduced cell proliferation of LAUD cells. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that circ-ZNF609 sponged miR-1224-3p to promote EVT1 expression. More importantly, miR-1224-3p overexpression strongly suppressed circZNF609-induced malignant phenotype of LAUD cells. CONCLUSION: Circ-ZNF609 enhances LAUD progression by increasing oncogenic EVT1 expression via sponging miR-1224-3p, revealing that circ-ZNF609/miR-1224-3p/ETV1 axis may be a promising therapeutic target for LAUD treatment.