Background
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-associated death globally. The first-line treatment strategy for CRC remains surgery [
1]. Although the therapeutic methods have been improved, the prognosis of patients with metastatic CRC is low [
2]. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanism behind the progression of CRC is crucial for CRC treatment.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a special class of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) with covalently closed circular structure [
3]. CircRNAs were found to be related to the pathogenesis of diseases [
4]. Moreover, mounting articles have pointed out the crucial roles of circRNAs in cancers [
5,
6]. For instance, Zhou et al. claimed that circRNA_0023642 accelerated the metastasis of gastric cancer cells through promoting EMT [
7]. Han et al. proved that circMTO1 reduced the malignance of hepatocellular carcinoma cells through miR-9 [
8]. Zeng et al. proved that circHIPK3 accelerated the proliferation and motility of CRC cells through miR-7 [
9]. In this study, the expression profile and working mechanism of circTADA2A in CRC were explored.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) refer to another class of ncRNAs, and they are 18–24 nucleotides in length [
10]. CircRNAs have been found to serve as miRNAs sponges to regulate the levels of downstream proteins, and this mechanism was also called competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanism [
11]. For example, Zhang et al. claimed that circRNA_100269 blocked the progression of gastric cancer through targeting miR-630 [
12]. Luan et al. found that circRNA_0084043 facilitated the development of malignant melanoma through targeting miR-153-3p [
13]. The function of miR-374a-3p in cancers is still undefined. Herein, circTADA2A/miR-374a-3p axis was found in CRC, and the molecular mechanism was investigated.
Kruppel like factor 14 (KLF14) is a member of KLF protein family, and it serves as a transcription factor. Many members of KLF family have been reported to suppress the progression of cancers. For example, He et al. demonstrated that KLF6 hampered the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells [
14]. Li et al. proved that KLF17 could inhibit the invasion of esophageal carcinoma cells [
15]. Zhu et al. claimed that KLF4 suppressed the EMT and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells [
16]. The abundance of KLF14 has been reported to be down-regulated in CRC [
17,
18]. Zhou et al. claimed that lncRNA HAND2-AS1 hampered the development of CRC through elevating the level of KLF14 via targeting miR-1275 [
18]. Nevertheless, the potential regulatory mechanism behind KLF14-mediated influence on CRC cells remains to be revealed.
According to the data from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and clinical samples, we found that circTADA2A was down-regulated in CRC tissues and cells. The role of circTADA2A was explored in vivo and in vitro. The underlying mechanism of circTADA2A-mediated inhibition of CRC progression was then explored.
Materials and methods
Patients
Seventy pairs of CRC specimens and matching paracancerous specimens were obtained from CRC patients at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University. All tissues were stored in liquid nitrogen for the detection of circTADA2A, miR-374a-3p and KLF14. All tissue samples were pathologically diagnosed. The study was authorized by the Ethic Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University. Written informed consent was provided from each subject.
Cell culture
Human CRC cell lines (HCT116, SW620, LoVo and SW480) and normal human colon epithelial cell line NCM460 were obtained from BeNa Culture Collection (Beijing, China). These cell lines were maintained in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM; Gibco, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS; Gibco), 10% penicillin (100 U/mL) and 10% streptomycin (100 μg/mL) in an incubator with the environment of 37 °C and 5% CO2.
Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR)
RNA was isolated with Trizol reagent (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA, USA). The purity and the concentration of different RNA samples were measured using NanoDrop ND-1000. The synthesis of complementary DNA (cDNA) was performed with Geneseed® II First Strand cDNA Synthesis Kit (Geneseed, Guangzhou, China) and All-in-OneTM miRNA First stand cDNA Synthesis Kit (GeneCopoeia, Rockville, MD, USA). Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) and U6 served as the internal references in this study. The quantification of circTADA2A, transcriptional adaptor 2A (TADA2A) messenger RNA (mRNA), miR-374a-3p and KLF14 was carried out using the 2−ΔΔCt method. The primers were shown as below: circTADA2A (Forward, 5′-TGTGCACCAAGACCAAGGAG-3′; Reverse, 5′-AGGAAAATCTGAAGTAGTGA-3′), TADA2A (Forward, 5′-CCTTTTTTCCTCTGCTTGCA-3′; Reverse, 5′-ATCCTGCCAATTTCCAAAGC-3′), miR-374a-3p (Forward, 5′-CUUAUCAGAUUGUAUUGUAAUU-3′; Reverse, 5′-AAUUACAAUACAAUCUGAUAAG-3′), KLF14 (Forward, 5′-TCGGAGGTGGGTGCGGCGCC-3′; Reverse, 5′-GGAGCCCTCGCCAGAGCTGC-3′), U6 (Forward, 5′-CTCGCTTCGGCAGCACA-3′; Reverse, 5′-AACGCTTCACGAATTTGCGT-3′), GAPDH (Forward, 5′-GGAGCCAAAAGGGTCATC-3′; Reverse, 5′-CCAGTGAGTTTCCCGTTC-3′), 18S rRNA (Forward, 5′-ACGGGCGCTGACCCCCCTTC-3′; Reverse, 5′-AGGGCAGACGTTCGAATGGG-3′).
RNase R treatment and subcellular fractionation
Total RNA samples were treated with 3 U/mg RNase R (Epicentre Technologies, Madison, WI, USA) for 30 min at room temperature. qRT-PCR was employed to detect the levels of circTADA2A and TADA2A mRNA. Subcellular fractionation was conducted with PARIS™ Kit (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA). 18S rRNA served as the cytoplasmic marker while U6 acted as nuclear marker in this study.
Cell transfection
CircTADA2A overexpression plasmid (circTADA2A) and control empty vector (vector), KLF14 small interfering RNA (si-KLF14) and siRNA control (si-con), miR-374a-3p mimic (miR-374a-3p) and control (miR-con), miR-374a-3p inhibitor (anti-miR-374a-3p) and control (anti-miR-con) were purchased from Genepharma (Shanghai, China), and these plasmids or RNAs were transfected into CRC cells using Lipofectamine 3000 (Invitrogen).
Xenograft tumor assay
BALB/c nude mice (5 weeks old) were purchased from Vital River Laboratory Animal Technology Co., Ltd. (Beijing, China) and randomly divided into 3 groups (n = 6). HCT116 or LoVo cells were stably transfected with vector or circTADA2A. The back region of BALB/c mice was subcutaneously injected with CRC cells stably expressing vector or circTADA2A or un-transfected CRC cells. The volume of tumors was measured every 7 d after inoculation for 7 d using a vernier caliper with the method of volume = π × (length × width2)/6. The mice were killed after inoculation for 35 d, and the tumors were weighed. Tumor tissues were subjected to measure the expression of circTADA2A by qRT-PCR. The procedures in this study were permitted by the Animal Research Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University.
Dual-luciferase reporter assay
The miR-374a-3p binding sequence in circTADA2A or the 3’untranslated region (3’UTR) of KLF14 was amplified and inserted to pGL3 luciferase reporter vector (Promega, Madison, WI, USA), and the recombinant luciferase reporter vector was termed as circTADA2A-wild-type (circTADA2A-WT) or KLF14-WT. The matching mutant type binding sites with miR-374a-3p in circTADA2A or the 3’UTR of KLF14 were also cloned to pGL3 luciferase reporter vector, generating circTADA2A-MUT or KLF14-MUT. LoVo and HCT116 cells were transfected with miR-con or miR-374a-3p and the above constructed reporter plasmids. The luciferase activities in different groups were determined by the dual-luciferase reporter assay system (Promega).
RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay
Magna RIP™ RNA-Binding Protein Immunoprecipitation kit (Millipore, Billerica, MA, USA) was used to conduct RIP assay. CRC cells were lysed with RIP buffer (Millipore). The cell lysate was incubated with sepharose beads (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA, USA) pre-coated with Argonaute-2 antibody (Anti-Ago2). Immunoglobulin G antibody (Anti-IgG) served as the control in this study. qRT-PCR was applied to measure the abundance of circTADA2A, miR-374a-3p and KLF14 in the immunoprecipitated complexes.
Cell cycle analysis by flow cytometry
CRC cells were harvested with cold phosphate buffer saline (PBS), and fixed in 70% cold ethanol solution (diluted with PBS) at − 20 °C overnight. After incubating with RNase (10 μM) for 30 min, propidine iodide (PI; 20 mg/mL; Solarbio, Beijing, China) was used to stain CRC cells for 20 min at 37 °C. The cell cycle was evaluated on a flow cytometer (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA, USA).
Cell apoptosis analysis by flow cytometry
CRC cells were collected and rinsed using cold PBS. Subsequently, CRC cells were suspended in Annexin-V binding buffer, and then these CRC cells were dyed using Annexin V combined fluorescein isothiocyanate (Annexin V-FITC; Solarbio) and PI (Solarbio) simultaneously in the dark for 15 min. The apoptotic CRC cells were tested on a flow cytometer (BD Biosciences).
Seahorse XFe 96 Extracellular Flux Analyzer (Seahorse Bioscience, Billerica, MA, USA) was used to detect the extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) and cellular oxygen consumption rate (OCR) using Seahorse XF Glycolysis Stress/Cell Mito Stress Test Kit (Seahorse Bioscience). For the detection of ECAR, Glucose, Oligomycin and 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) were sequentially added to the wells of Seahorse XF 96 cell culture microplate. For the measure of OCR, Oligomycin, p-trifluoromethoxy carbonyl cyanide phenylhydrazone (FCCP) and the mitochondrial complex I inhibitor rotenone plus the mitochondrial complex III inhibitor antimycin A (Rote+AA) were sequentially added.
Glucose Uptake Colorimetric Assay kit (Biovision, Milpitas, California, USA), Lactate Assay Kit II (Biovision) and ATP Colorimetric Assay kit (Biovision) were utilized to detect the glucose consumption and the production of lactate and ATP in CRC cells according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Western blot assay
After relevant treatment, CRC cells were harvested using PBS and disrupted using Radioimmunoprecipitation assay (RIPA) solution (Beyotime, Shanghai, China). Protein samples (30 μg) were run on sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) gel and transferred to the polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane. The PVDF membrane was blocked using 5% non-fat milk for 1 h, and then incubated with anti-KLF14 (ab85476; Abcam, Cambridge, MA, USA) or anti-β-actin (ab8226, Abcam) at 4 °C overnight. After washing with PBS-Tween 20 (PBST) for 3 times, the membrane was incubated with the secondary antibody (ab205718) for 2 h. After washing with PBST, the protein bands were measured by the enhanced chemiluminescent (ECL) system (Beyotime).
Statistical analysis
GraphPad Prism 7.0 was used to analyze the data and generate the graphs. Student’s t-test or one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey’s test were used to calculate the P value between two groups or more than two groups. The correlation among the expression of miR-374a-3p, circTADA2A and KLF14 was analyzed using Spearman’s correlation coefficient. The differences between the enrichment of circTADA2A and the clinical characteristics of CRC patients were analyzed using χ2 test. P < 0.05 was identified as statistically significant.
Discussion
Investigating new diagnosis and prognosis biomarkers and uncovering the signal network behind the pathogenesis of CRC are essential for CRC treatment. In recent years, circRNAs have gotten a lot of attention. CircRNAs have been identified as novel biomarkers of cancers [
5,
20]. For instance, Jiang et al. claimed that circRNA Cdr1as was a new prognostic marker of cholangiocarcinoma [
21]. Yuan et al. revealed that circ_0026344 could serve as a prognostic marker for CRC, and circ_0026344 repressed the development of CRC through miR-21 and miR-31 [
22]. The roles of circTADA2A in osteosarcoma and breast cancer have been reported. Wu et al. found that circTADA2A served as an oncogene in osteosarcoma, and circTADA2A accelerated the motility and proliferation of osteosarcoma cells via miR-203a-3p/CREB3 axis [
23]. Xu et al. proved that circTADA2A prevented the proliferation and metastasis of breast cancer cells via miR-203a-3p/SOCS3 axis [
24]. The diverse roles of circTADA2A in osteosarcoma and breast cancer might due to the heterogeneity of tumor microenvironment. However, the role of circTADA2A in CRC has never been reported. On the basis of the data from GEO dataset and 70 pairs CRC tissues and normal tissues, we found that circTADA2A was markedly down-regulated in CRC tissues relative to normal tissues. The level of circTADA2A was also found to be reduced in CRC cells compared with that in NCM460 cells. Murine xenograft model was established to test the role of circTADA2A in vivo. CircTADA2A overexpression inhibited the growth of CRC tumors in vivo, indicating the anti-tumor role of circTADA2A in CRC. Besides, circTADA2A overexpression also blocked the cell cycle and glycolysis and promoted the apoptosis of CRC cells in vitro.
MiR-374a-3p was found to be a target of circTADA2A in CRC cells through conducting dual-luciferase reporter assay and RIP assay. The function of miR-374a-3p has never been reported before. To explore if circTADA2A functioned through miR-374a-3p, we co-transfected circTADA2A and miR-374a-3p into LoVo and HCT116 cells. The addition of miR-374a-3p partly recovered the malignant potential of CRC cells which was suppressed by the accumulation of circTADA2A, demonstrated that circTADA2A suppressed the progression of CRC at least partly through targeting miR-374a-3p. MiR-374a-3p was one of the targets of circTADA2A, and its other miRNAs targets might also involved in circTADA2A-mediated influence in CRC. In further study, the signal network behind circTADA2A in CRC needs be further explored.
KLF14 has been reported to be a tumor suppressor in diverse cancers. Fan et al. reported that KLF14 depletion was associated with the amplification of centrosome and tumorigenesis [
25]. Wang et al. demonstrated that lncRNA DGCR5 suppressed the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma through miR-346/KLF14 axis [
26]. As for CRC, Zhou et al. found that KLF14 acted as the downstream gene of HAND2-AS1/miR-1275 axis to suppress the development of CRC [
18]. Wu et al. claimed that KLF14 repressed the glycolysis of CRC cells through down-regulating glycolytic enzyme LDHB [
17]. In this study, KLF14 was confirmed as a target of miR-374a-3p in CRC cells. Echoing with previous researches [
17,
18], rescue experiments showed that KLF14 functioned as the target of miR-374a-3p to decline the malignance of CRC cells. Further experiments demonstrated that circTADA2A could enhance the expression of KLF14 through serving as a ceRNA for miR-374a-3p.
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