Long non-coding RNA ROR accelerates the progression of breast cancer via promoting stemness in MCF-10A cells

Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), regulator of reprogramming (ROR) is an intergenic lncRNA previously shown to contribute to tumorigenesis in several malignancies. In their previous study, the present authors found that ROR was highly associated with gastric cancer progression, however, the role of ROR in breast cancer (BC) was still unclear. Here, the authors investigated the role and mechanism of ROR in BC. They found that the expression of ROR was increased in the MCF-7 cells and MDA-MB-231 cells compared with the control MCF-10A. The exogenous expression of ROR was increased using plasmid overexpressing ROR in MCF-10A cells, then the biological function of ROR was determined using MTT assay and Transwell assay. The result indicated that overexpression of ROR could significantly increase the capability of cell proliferation and invasion. Furthermore, the molecular markers for BC stem cell (BCSC) were verified, the results showed that enhanced expression of cluster of differentiation 44 (CD44) and aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH1) was observed in MCF-10A cells with ROR overexpression. In summary, this study will further expand our understanding of ROR and provide a new target for the treatment of BC.

Long non-coding RNA; ROR; Breast cancer; CD44; ALDH1.

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