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Wei Zhao1 ,* Xue Jiang2 ,* Shuxia Yang2 1Department of Functional Examination, The Sixth People’s Hospital of Qingdao, Qingdao City, Shandong Province 266033, People’s Republic of China; 2Health Examination Center, The Sixth People’s Hospital of Qingdao, Qingdao City, Shandong Province 266033, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Shuxia Yang Tel +86-532-81636889Email yangshuxia268@163.comBackground: Taurine upregulated gene 1 (TUG1) has been recognized as a novel oncogenic gene. The current study was established to explore the function and regulatory mechanism of TUG1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Methods: Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of TUG1, miR-29c-3p, and COL1A1 in tissues and cell lines. MTT assay, wound-healing and transwell assay were utilized for the detection of cell viability, migration and invasion, respectively. The interactions between miR-29c-3p and TUG1/COL1A1 were predicted by starBase v2.0 (http://starbase.sysu.edu.cn/) and verified by the dual-luciferase reporter or RNA immunoprecipitation assay. Western blot assay was performed to determine the protein levels of COL1A1, cyclin D1, E-cadherin, N-cadherin, Bcl-2, and Bax.Results: Dramatically increased expression of TUG1 was noticed in HCC tissues and cell lines. TUG1 knockdown restrained the proliferation, migration, and invasion, and promoted the apoptosis of HCC cells. TUG1 targeted miR-29c-3p and inhibited miR-29c-3p expression. Overexpression of miR-29c-3p inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells. MiR-29c-3p directly targeted COL1A1 and down-regulated COL1A1 expression. In addition, downregulation of miR-29c-3p and upregulation of COL1A1 both reversed the effects of TUG1 knockdown on the proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion of HCC cells.Conclusion: TUG1 could promote the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells through regulating miR-29c-3p/COL1A1 axis. This novel finding might provide a latent target for the treatment of HCC.Keywords: TUG1, miR-29c-3p, miR-29c-3p/COL1A1, hepatocellular carcinoma

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma usually extends beyond the visible margin. Little is known about the predictors for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma with subclinical extension in Chinese individuals. This study aimed to construct a nomogram for predicting the probability of subclinical extension of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in Chinese patients. A retrospective analysis was conducted using data from Mohs micrographic surgery-treated cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma patients at a single institution between December 1, 2009 and October 31, 2019. Subclinical extension was defined as a lesion requiring ≥ 2 Mohs stages or with final safe margins of ≥ 5 mm. A nomogram predicting the probability of subclinical extension was constructed using the predictors identified in multivariable analysis. Of 274 patients included, 119 (43.4%) had subclinical extension. In multivariable analysis, male sex (odds ratio [OR], 2.45; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.40–4.29; P = .002), lesions on mucocutaneous areas (OR, 3.71; 95% CI, 1.34–10.32; P = .012) and extremities (OR, 2.40; 95% CI, 1.20–4.78; P = .013), maximum diameter of 10 to 19 mm (OR, 14.15; 95% CI, 4.24–47.28; P

Binbin Wang,* Shuxia Yang,* Wei Zhao Department of Hepatology, Qingdao Sixth People’s Hospital, Qingdao, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Wei ZhaoDepartment of Hepatology, Qingdao Sixth People’s Hospital, No. 9 Fushun Road, Qingdao 266000, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/ Fax +861057830131Email zhaowqdsph@tom.comBackground: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is prevalent throughout the world. The aim of this study is to explore new long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) associated with hepatocellular carcinoma and detect their expression levels in hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines and tissues. These results will provide new clues on further function and biomarker studies of HCC-related lncRNAs.Patients and Methods: All patients were diagnosed as HCC between 30th, March, 2015 and 30th, July, 2018. LncRNA human gene expression microarray was applied to the profiling of lncRNAs in four cancerous tissues and the paired paracancerous tissues.Results: We retrospectively reviewed 63 patients with primary HCC who underwent a curative liver resection at the Department of Hepatology, Qingdao Sixth People’s Hospital. The expression level of lncRNA NRAD1 and LINC00152 was detected by real-time PCR. Prognostic factors were evaluated using Kaplan–Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards models. By microarray profiling of lncRNAs, 256 lncRNAs were found to be differentially expressed, including 162 upregulated and 94 downregulated (P< 0.05, fold change> 2). Two candidate lncRNAs were determined as the targets in this study, which were NRAD1 (upregulated by 6.35 fold), LINC00152 (upregulated by 4.53 fold). NRAD1 and LINC00152 were downregulated in the normal liver cell lines Chang liver, HL7702, THLE-2, THLE-3, FL62891 and AML12, which were significantly lower than HCC cell lines SMMC-7721, Hep3B, HuH7, MHCC-97H, HCC-LM and SK-Hep-1 (P< 0.05). Overexpression of lncRNA NRAD1 and LINC00152 was associated with decreasing OS rates, respectively (P=0.0263 and P=0.0285). Meanwhile, overexpression of NRAD1 and LINC00152 was associated with decreasing PFS rates, respectively (P=0.0174 and P=0.0041). After adjusting for competing risk factors, we identified that microvascular invasion (P=0.014), tumor size (P=0.026), lncRNA NRAD1 (P=0.001) and LINC00152P9 (P=0.036) expression levels were independent prognostic factors associated with prognosis of patients with HCC.Conclusion: We found lncRNA NRAD1 and LINC00152 expressed significantly higher in HCC tissues compared with non-tumorous tissues. Overexpression of lncRNA NRAD1 and LINC00152 were independent risk factors associated with the prognosis of patients with HCC.Keywords: long non-coding RNA, HCC, NRAD1, LINC00152