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Long Noncoding RNA MNX1 antisense RNA 1 Exerts Oncogenic Functions in Bladder Cancer by Regulating miR-218-5p/RAB1A Axis

LncRNA MNX1 antisense RNA 1 (MNX1-AS1) is significantly overexpressed in patients with bladder cancer, suggesting that it might be associated with bladder cancer. However, the molecular mechanism of MNX1-AS1 in bladder cancer remained indistinct. To illustrate the role of MNX1-AS1 in bladder cancer, the gain- and loss-of-function experiments were conducted in bladder cancer cells. Reduced expression of MNX1-AS1 could suppress cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition in bladder cancer cells, whereas overexpression of MNX1-AS1 resulted in the opposite effects. Mechanistic analysis demonstrated that miR-218-5p was a direct target of RAB1A. MNX1-AS1 could competitively bind to miR-218-5p to regulate RAB1A expression in bladder cancer cells. Furthermore, in vivo experiments revealed that reduced expression of MNX1-AS1 inhibited tumor growth and metastasis. Taken together, MNX1-AS1 functions as a sponge to miR-218-5p to modulate RAB1A expression in bladder cancer, which suggests that MNX1-AS1 might serve as a novel therapeutic target and a novel biomarker for metastasis and prognosis in bladder cancer. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Our study demonstrates that long noncoding RNA MNX1-AS1 promotes the initiation and progression of bladder cancer. MNX1-AS1 regulates RAB1A expression to promote proliferation, migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transitions of bladder cancer cells via miR-218-5p, which contributes to the tumor growth and metastasis of bladder cancer. Collectively, these results suggest that MNX1-AS1 might serve as a potential biomarker for bladder cancer.