Circular RNA PIP5K1A (circPIP5K1A) accelerates endometriosis progression by regulating the miR-153-3p/Thymosin Beta-4 X-Linked (TMSB4X) pathway

ABSTRACT

As a common gynecologic disease, endometriosis (EM) poses a threat to the reproductive health of about 10% women globally. Recent studies have revealed that circular RNAs (circRNAs) are deeply implicated in EM pathogenesis. However, the functions of circPIP5K1A in EM have not been studied yet. Our study intended to uncover the molecular mechanism of circPIP5K1A in EM. In this work, gene and protein expressions were determined by RT-qPCR or Western blotting. CCK-8, wound healing, transwell, and flow cytometry assays were conducted to analyze cell viability, migration, invasion, cell cycle, and apoptosis. Additionally, bioinformatics analysis, dual-luciferase reporter assay, as well as RIP assay were performed to investigate the combination between miR-153-3p and circPIP5K1A or TMSB4X. Herein, we found remarkable high circPIP5K1A expression in EM tissues and cells. Silencing of circPIP5K1A suppressed proliferation, restrained cell cycle, increased cell apoptosis, and decreased migration and invasion in EM cells. In addition, miR-153-3p inhibition could abrogate the impacts of circPIP5K1A knockdown on EM progression in vitro. Also, we found that circPIP5K1A regulated TMSB4X level via interaction with miR-153-3p in EM cells. Besides, circPIP5K1A promoted EM progression via TMSB4X. Moreover, TMSB4X could activate the TGF-β signaling in hEM15A cells. To sum up, our study elucidated that circPIP5K1A accelerated EM progression in vitro by activating the TGF-β signaling pathway via the miR-153-3p/TMSB4X axis, providing a potential clinical target for EM treatment.

Graphical Abstract

KEYWORDS:

• Circpip5k1a
• miR-153-3p
• TMSB4X
• endometriosis

Research highlights

CircPIP5K1A depletion suppressed EM progression in vitro.

CircPIP5K1A promoted EM phenotypes in vitro via interaction with miR-153-3p.

CircPIP5K1A regulated TMSB4X expression in EM cells via miR-153-3p.

CircPIP5K1A accelerated EM progression in vitro via regulating TMSB4X expression.

Availability of data and material

All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article or are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Authors’ contributions

LS and YW designed and carried out the study. LS and JW participated in the experiments and statistical analysis. LS, YW and JW wrote the manuscript. JW revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Consent for publication

All of the authors have consented to publication of this research.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

This study was permitted by the Ethics Committee of Maanshan Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Additional information

Funding

The authors have no funding to report;applicable;