Long non-coding RNA TUG1 promotes cervical cancer progression by regulating the miR-138-5p-SIRT1 axis

Increasing evidences showed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play vital roles in tumor progression. Recent studies indicated that lncRNA TUG1 was upregulated and promoted tumor processes in several cancers. However, the expression and underlying mechanism of TUG1 in cervical cancer remain unclear. In the present study, we found that TUG1 expression was upregulated in cervical cancer tissues and correlated with advanced clinical features and poor overall survival. TUG1 knockdown suppressed cervical cancer cell growth and metastasis in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. In addition, our results indicated that TUG1 could act as an endogenous sponge by directly binding to miR-138-5p and suppressed miR-138-5p expression. Furthermore, we found that TUG1 could reverse the inhibitory effect of miR-138-5p on cervical cancer cells processes, which might be involved in the activation of SIRT1, a target gene of miR-138-5p, and activation of Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway. Taken together, we elucidated that TUG1 might promote cervical cancer malignant progression via miR-138-5p-SIRT1-Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway axis.