Objective: To study the expression of non-coding RNA HULC in different tumor cell lines and its effects on the expression of neighboring genes.
Methods: The expression levels of HULC were detected in different tumor cell lines. And the neighboring genes of HULC were searched by bioinformatics. Then its effects on the neighboring genes were examined by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
Results: The expression levels of HULC RNA were detected in the 293T, EC9706, KYSE150, HCT116, SMMC-7721, HepG2, H446 and H1299 cell lines. Non-coding RNA HULC was specifically highly up-regulated in hepatocarcinoma cell line HepG2. Little coding genes existed around HULC gene (< 1000 bp) and the nearest coding gene was SLC35B3 at 200 000 bp away from the location of HULC gene. The SMMC-7721 cell line had a low endogenous expression of HULC gene. In comparison with SMMC-7721 cell line, the expression of SLC35B3 gene in HepG2 cell line was higher [(0.477 ± 0.040)% vs (0.129 ± 0.004)%, P < 0.01]. The exogenous expression of HULC had little effects on SLC35B3 gene. But knocking down the expression of HULC gene by siRNA attenuated the expression of SLC35B3 [siA (0.283 ± 0.007)%, siB (0.387 ± 0.015)%, control (0.477 ± 0.042)%].
Conclusion: The specifically up-regulated non-coding gene HULC in HepG2 cell line has some effects on the expression of its neighboring gene SLC35B3.