Abstract
BACKGROUND: The development of transcriptomics has provided a new perspective to understand cancers. However, the role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) has not been fully elucidated. In the field of breast cancer, exploring the biological role and impact of lncRNAs on patient prognosis is of great importance. METHODS: Expression data of the lncRNA, LINC02613, were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset. The Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test, Wilcoxon rank sum test and logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the relationship between LINC02613 and clinicopathological characteristics. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses were used to assess the prognostic value of LINC02613. Gene ontology (GO) analysis, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and immune infiltration analysis were used to explore the potential biological mechanisms of LINC02613. RESULTS: The expression of LINC02613 was downregulated in tumor samples and was related to poor overall survival (OS) in breast cancer patients. Statistical analysis revealed that low expression of LINC02613 was associated with Asian ethnicity, older age, higher histological grade and higher expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). Positive expression of immunohistochemical markers (ER, PR and HER2), high pathological stage and N stage were independent predictors for low LINC02613 expression. Decreased expression of LINC02613 caused an increase in Wnt2 and Wnt3 protein expression, which activated the Wnt signaling pathway, thereby promoting cell cycle progression, DNA replication and glycolysis. At the same time, the antitumor immunity of the body was also weakened when the expression of LINC02613 was decreased. CONCLUSIONS: Low expression of LINC02613 predicts poor OS in breast cancer patients. LINC02613 is involved in the regulation of the cell cycle, DNA replication and glycolysis via the Wnt signaling pathway, and it is related to antitumor immunity.