HULC functions as an oncogene in ovarian carcinoma cells by negatively modulating miR-125a-3p
Authors: Haiying Su
Lina Xu
Ping Chu
Journal: Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry (2019)
Discipline: BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
Keywords: HULC; Ovarian carcinoma; PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway; miR-125a-3p.
Affiliations: Department of Gynecology, Jining No.1 People's Hospital, No.6 Jiankang Road, Jining, 272011, China., Department of Gynecology, Jining No.1 People's Hospital, No.6 Jiankang Road, Jining, 272011, China. .

Abstract:  The aberrant expression of highly upregulated in liver cancer (HULC) has been reported to participate in ovarian cancer development. A recent research has revealed that HULC-modulated microRNAs (miRNAs) in tumorigenesis. To confirm the functions of HULC on tumorigenesis of ovarian, we explored the effects of HULC expression on ovarian cancer cell development, as well as the underlying mechanism. We transfected SKOV3 cells with pEX-HULC, sh-HULC, and miR-125a-3p mimic as well as their corresponding negative controls (pEX-3, sh-NC, and NC) to alter the expression of HULC and miR-125a-3p, which were analyzed by quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR). Expression of proteins associated with cell cycle, apoptosis, and signaling pathways was determined by Western blot assay. The proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion were explored by bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation assay, Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)/propidium iodide (PI) method, and transwell migration and invasion assays, respectively. HULC overexpression promoted proliferation, migration, and invasion, while inhibited apoptosis of SKOV3 cells. In addition, HULC negatively regulated the expression of miR-125a-3p. Besides, miR-125a-3p mimic reversed the effects of HULC on proliferation, migration, and invasion as well as apoptosis of SKOV3 cells. Moreover, we found that HULC enhanced phosphorylated expression of regulatory factors in phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian targets of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) signaling pathway by downregulating expression of miR-125a-3p. Overexpression of HULC promoted ovarian carcinoma development by activating PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway via downregulating miR-125a-3p. 

Retracted: No

PubPeer comments:
 This paper belongs to a set of over 400 papers (as per February 2020) that share very similar Western blots with tadpole-like shaped bands, the same background pattern, and striking similarities in title structures, paper layout, bar graph design, and - in a subset - flow cytometry panels. Despite these similarities, these papers are authored by researchers from different departments and institutes, with almost no overlap in authors. The list of these papers is available here: https: docs.google.com spreadsheets d 1KXqTAyl4j-jVorFPMD2XRpr76LcIKJ0CVyIvRj0exYQ edit?usp=sharing A more detailed description of this set of papers, suspected to all be generated by a common source, a paper mill , can be found here: * https: forbetterscience.com 2020 01 24 the-full-service-paper-mill-and-its-chinese-customers (January 2020) * https: scienceintegritydigest.com 2020 02 21 the-tadpole-paper-mill (February 2020) The same paper mill has been described in these papers: * Jana Christopher - Systematic fabrication of scientific images revealed - FEBS Letters (2018) - https: febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com doi full 10.1002 1873-3468.13201 * Jennifer A Byrne and Jana Christopher - Digital magic, or the dark arts of the 21st centuryu2014how can journals and peer reviewers detect manuscripts and publications from paper mills? - FEBS Letters (2020) - https: febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com doi full 10.1002 1873-3468.13747 , 
 Expression of Concern, [19 March 2021] . ---------------------------------------- The Editors-in-Chief would like to alert readers that concerns have been raised regarding the data in this article. The authors did not provide raw data when requested. The journal was also unable to contact the authorsu2019 institutions. Readers are advised to interpret the details of this article with caution [1]. None of the authors responded to any correspondence from the editor or publisher about this Editorial Expression of Concern.. , 
 http: med.china.com.cn content pid 291148 tid 1013 iswap 1 The paper  HULC functions as an oncogene in ovarian carcinoma cells by negatively modulating miR-125a-3p published by Su Haiying as the corresponding author and Chu Ping as the first author from the First People s Hospital of Jining City, Shandong Province, has been found to be tampered. Data, fabricated research process, and academic misconduct that improperly signed. The relevant responsible persons shall be dealt with as follows: 1. Corresponding author Su Haiying: Cancel the application qualifications for scientific research projects, scientific research awards, scientific and technological achievements, and scientific and technological talent plans within 5 years, and cancel the qualifications for nominations or recommenders, nominees or recommenders, review experts, etc. for 5 years, and postpone employment for 1 year Senior professional and technical positions, instructed to contact the magazine as soon as possible to withdraw the manuscript; 2. To the first author Chu Ping: cancel the qualifications for applying for scientific research projects, scientific research awards, scientific and technological achievements, and scientific and technological talent plans within 5 years, cancel qualifications for nominations or recommenders, nominees or recommenders, review experts, etc. within 5 years, and delay promotion One-year senior professional and technical position. (Notification link: http: www.jnrmyy.com keyan kxyj gonggao 2021 0907 6083.html) , 
 Retracted [1 March 2022] . --------------------------- The Editors-in-Chief have retracted this article following an investigation by the Chinese National Health and Medical Commission. The investigation found the data presented here has been either forged or tampered with. The Editors-in-Chief therefore no longer have confidence in the integrity of the data in this article. None of the authors have responded to any correspondence from the editor or publisher about this retraction. , 
 An illustration of the Western blots of this paper. Here is a detail of Figure 2e, where it can be observed that the background of all panels appears to be identical, as characteristic of the Tadpole paper mill. ![file] As a side note, Springer still charges nearly $40 for a paper that has been determined to be fabricated. https: link.springer.com article 10.1007 s13105-019-00669-5 ,