Despite available treatments like radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery, many breast cancer patients experience cancer recurrence, and the survival rates are not very high. This emphasizes the need for understanding the molecular intricacies of breast cancer to find new therapeutic targets.
New research has focused on how a specific type of RNA, known as long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), impacts the development and spread of breast cancer.
Unlike other RNAs that serve as blueprints for making proteins, lncRNAs don’t make proteins but are involved in regulating various cellular processes. The study particularly examines one lncRNA called SNHG1 and how it plays a role in breast cancer progression.
The researchers found that SNHG1 levels are higher in breast cancer tissues and cells than in normal tissues. By reducing the levels of SNHG1 in breast cancer cells, they observed a decrease in the cells’ ability to grow, spread, and undergo a process called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which is crucial for cancer metastasis. Moreover, lowering SNHG1 levels led to an increase in cell death.
Further investigations revealed that SNHG1 influences the behavior of breast cancer cells by interacting with a microRNA called miR-641, which in turn affects another gene, RRS1, involved in cancer progression.
Essentially, SNHG1 prevents miR-641 from doing its job, which is to keep the RRS1 gene in check. When RRS1 is freely active because of the high levels of SNHG1, it promotes the growth and spread of cancer cells while preventing their death.
Through various experiments, including ones performed in mice, the researchers demonstrated that reducing SNHG1 levels could significantly slow down the growth of breast cancer tumors.
This indicates that targeting SNHG1 could be a promising approach for developing new treatments for breast cancer.
The study suggests that interfering with this pathway could offer a new strategy for combating breast cancer, potentially leading to better outcomes for patients.