MiR-139-5p suppresses autophagy and inhibits non-small cell lung cancer by targeting ULK1

JIANG Ze-yong; ZHAO Jian; WU Wen-jie; CHEN Guo-shuo

doi:10.13820/j.cnki.gdyx.20235054

Abstract：Objective To evaluate the impact of microRNAs(miRNAs)on lung cancer and elucidate the specif-ic mechanism,providing theoretical basis for the development of anti-cancer biological agents.Methods Differential expression of miRNAs in lung cancer tissues and normal lung tissues was identified by sequencing.The relationship be-tween miRNAs and lung cancer was validated using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)database.Cell viability,invasion,migration,and anti-apoptotic capacity were assessed using Cell Counting Kit-8(CCK-8),transwell,and flow cytometry assays after miRNA intervention.Bioinformatics analysis of miRNA target genes and functional validation were conducted.Results Sequencing revealed decreased expression of miR-139-5p in lung cancer tissues compared to normal lung tissues.TCGA data confirmed the role of miR-139-5p in lung cancer,suggesting its potential as a tumor suppressor.Functional assays demonstrated that miR-139-5p inhibited the viability,invasion,and anti-apoptotic ca-pacity of lung cancer cells.Mechanistic studies revealed the involvement of autophagy in the development of lung cancer,and miR-139-5p directly targeted and inhibited the autophagy gene unc-51-like kinase 1(ULK1),thereby sup-pressing autophagy in lung cancer.Downregulation of ULK1 reduced the viability,invasion,and anti-apoptotic capacity of lung cancer cells,while upregulation of ULK1 had the opposite effects.Conclusion MiR-139-5p attenuates auto-phagy in non-small cell lung cancer by targeting ULK1,thereby weakening the carcinogenic effects of autophagy.