Long non-coding RNA AC245100.4 contributes to prostate cancer migration via regulating PAR2 and activating p38-MAPK pathway

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most common cause of cancer-related mortality in men. Prostate cancer metastasis usually observed at the last stage is the major cause of prostate cancer-related death. Long non-coding RNAs were reported to be involved in tumorigenesis and progression of prostate cancer. This study aimed to investigate the effects and related mechanisms of AC245100.4 in prostate cancer. Knockdown and overexpression of AC245100.4 was used to detect the effect of AC245100.4 on cell migration. qRT-PCR was used to confirm the downstream target of AC245100.4. RAP-MS was used to find pathways related to AC245100.4. Western blot was performed to detect the expression of p-p38 and p38. We found that AC245100.4 promoted the migration of prostate cancer cells via regulating PAR2. The AC245100.4 or PAR2 knockdown resulted in a decrease in Vimentin but an increase in E-cadherin protein levels, while the AC245100.4 or PAR2 overexpression got the opposite results. Moreover, we discovered that AC245100.4 activated the p38-MAPK via regulating PAR2. In brief, these results have suggested that AC245100.4 and PAR2 served as oncogenic factors in cellular migration in PCa cells.