Upregulated circular RNA circ_0070934 facilitates cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma cell growth and invasion by sponging miR-1238 and miR-1247-5p

Accumulating studies have appreciated circular RNAs (circRNAs) as novel prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets in malignant carcinomas. Here, we aim to investigate the expression of a novel circRNA, circ_0070934. The biological roles and mechanisms of circ_0070934 in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) were explored. The expression of circ_0070934 in CSCC tissues and cell lines was evaluated by qRT-PCR. Loss-of-function and gain-of-function assays were performed to detect cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion in vitro. Moreover, the underlying molecular mechanism of circ_0070934 was predicted by online database and luciferase reporter assay. Abnormally overexpression of circ_0070934 was detected in CSCC samples and cell lines. Inhibition of cell proliferation, invasion, migration, and increased apoptosis were observed upon circ_0070934 knockdown. The opposite effect was observed in the circ_0070934 overexpression cells. Circ_0070934 expression was negatively correlated with miR-1238 and miR-1247-5p expression in CSCC and luciferase reporter experiment verified the binding ability between circ_0070934 and miR-1238/miR-1247-5p. Rescue experiments further identified that the oncogenic role of circ_0070934 is attributed to its suppression of miR-1238 and miR-1247-5p. Taken together, our results implicate that circ_0070934 is correlated with tumor aggressiveness by serving as an oncogenic circRNA in CSCC.