Hsa_circ_0020095 Promotes Oncogenesis and Cisplatin Resistance in Colon Cancer by Sponging miR-487a-3p and Modulating SOX9/c-Met

Colon cancer (CC) currently ranks as the third most common human cancer worldwide with an increasing incidence and a poor prognosis. Recently, circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been reported to regulate the progression of diverse human cancers. However, the role of circRNA hsa_circ_0020095 in CC remains largely unclear. In the present study, we demonstrated that circ_0020095 was highly expressed in CC tissues and cells. The proliferation, migration, invasion and cisplatin resistance of CC were suppressed by silencing circ_0020095 in vitro and in vivo or by ectopic expression of miR-487a-3p in vitro. Mechanistically, circ_0020095 could directly bind to miR-487a-3p and subsequently act as a miR-487a-3p sponge to modulate the activity by targeting the 3’-UTR of SOX9. Interestingly, overexpression of circ_0020095 dramatically reversed the suppressive effects of miR-487a-3p mimics on CC cells. In conclusion, circ_0020095 functions as an oncogene to accelerate CC cell proliferation, invasion, migration and cisplatin resistance through the miR-487a-3p/SOX9/C-Met axis, which could be a promising target for CC treatment. Funding Statement: This experiment is funded by an independent established funding source from Department of Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgery, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences. Declaration of Interests: The authors have no commercial or other associations that might pose a conflict of interest Ethics Approval Statement: This study was approved by the ethics committee of Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute. Written informed consent was obtained from every patient. Animal manipulations were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the Hospital.