Retracted Article: Long non-coding RNA KCNQ1OT1 promotes osteosarcoma progression by increasing Œ≤-catenin activity
Authors: Shengyang Du
Lei Cao
Changsheng Zhang
Journal: RSC Advances (2018)
Discipline: CHEMISTRY
Keywords: Long non-coding RNA; KCNQ1OT1; osteosarcoma; clinicopathological features; overexpression
Affiliations: Department of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery, Henan Luoyang Orthopedic Hospital (Henan Provincial Orthopedic Hospital), Zhengzhou, China, Department of Orthopaedics, The First People's Hospital of Xuzhou, Xuzhou

Abstract:  Objective: Long non-coding RNA KCNQ1OT1 has been associated with the development of different types of cancers. The present research investigated the role of KCNQ1OT1 in osteosarcoma. Methods: Expression level of KCNQ1OT1 in osteosarcoma and paired non-cancerous tissue specimens from 56 osteosarcoma patients and its association with patients' clinicopathological features was investigated. KCNQ1OT1 overexpression and knockdown in primary-cultured osteosarcoma cells was constructed by lentiviral transduction. Influence of KCNQ1OT1 overexpression or knockdown on osteosarcoma cell growth, apoptosis, migration, invasion, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and beta-catenin activation was investigated. Results: Expression of KCNQ1OT1 in osteosarcoma tissue specimens was significantly increased in comparison to that in adjacent counterparts. High expression of KCNQ1OT1 significantly associated with osteosarcoma progression and patients' decreased survival. Overexpression of KCNQ1OT1 significantly increased osteosarcoma cell growth, proliferation, migration, invasion, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and beta-catenin activation while reducing cell apoptosis in vitro, and KCNQ1OT1 knockdown showed opposite effects. Inhibition of beta-catenin/TCF activity by ICG-001 treatment significantly attenuated the promoting effect of KCNQ1OT1 overexpression on osteosarcoma cell malignancy described above. Conclusion: KCNQ1OT1 might be a potential prognostic factor in osteosarcoma. High expression of KCNQ1OT1 might promote osteosarcoma development by increasing the activation of WNT/beta-catenin signaling pathway. 

Retracted: Yes

PubPeer comments:
 This is one of about 70 papers retracted from RSC advances. On [7 January 2021] , ----------------------------- The Royal Society of Chemistry hereby wholly retracts this RSC Advances article due to concerns with the reliability of the data. The images in the article were screened by an image integrity expert. The expert found that the backgrounds to a number of western blot panels presented in Fig. 2I, 4E and 5G were identical and concluded that the bands had been added onto a false background. The authors were asked to provide the raw data for this article, but did not respond. Given the significance of the concerns about the validity of the data, and the lack of raw data, the findings presented in this paper are not reliable. The authors have been informed but have not responded to any correspondence regarding the retraction. Signed: Laura Fisher, Executive Editor, RSC Advances -------------------------------- In addition to the implausible stylised WBs, Fig 2H is also of interest:  a representative of flow cytometry results in panel (E)  Are these plausible distributions? Especially the NC panel, where dots are regularly spaced through the halo of the pattern as if avoiding one another s company, which obviously does not happen with the stochastic processes of flow cytometry. ,