Expression of oncolong noncoding RNA taurine-upregulated gene-1 in colon cancer: A clinical study supported by in silico analysis.

Abstract

Recent studies confirmed that dysregulation of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) is a potential contributor to the development and progression of colon cancer. However, the prognostic value of these RNA molecules remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the expression of taurine-upregulated gene-1 (TUG1) lncRNA in colon cancer and its clinical implications. A retrospective study on 47 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples of surgically resected primary colon cancer specimens was done. Total RNA purified from the colon cancer samples and noncancer adjacent tissue sections was quantified by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to assess TUG1 relative expression levels normalized to GAPDH endogenous control. Also, in silico data analysis was applied. The relative expression levels were calculated using the LIVAK method. The survival rates were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier curves and the Cox proportional model. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. TUG1expression in the colon cancer specimens was significantly overexpressed (median = 21.50, interquartile range [IQR]: 7.0-209.2; P = 0.001) relative to the noncancerous tissues. In silico analysis confirmed TUG1 upregulation in colon carcinoma (median = 13.92, IQR: 13.5-1432). There were no significant associations between TUG1 expression and clinicopathological characteristics, such as the site, grade, stage, histopathological type, or the rates of lymphovascular invasion and relapse. Similarly, Kaplan-Meir and Cox multivariate regression analyses showed that TUG1 expression could not predict the overall survival and progression-free survival in colon cancer patients of our population. This study confirms the overexpression of TUG1 lncRNA in colon cancer tissues. Larger sample size is warranted to further elucidate the specific role of TUG1 in colon cancer.