LINC02154 Promotes Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Progression via the PI3K–AKT–mTOR Signaling Pathway by Interacting With IGF2BP2

ABSTRACT As important types of noncoding RNAs, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been found to be involved in the progression of various cancers. Accumulating evidence indicates that LINC02154 plays a critical role in cancer progression, but the underlying mechanisms regulating esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remain unclear. Here, we found that LINC02154 is significantly upregulated in ESCC cell lines and ESCC tissues. LINC02154 knockdown significantly inhibited the proliferation and migration of ESCC cells in vitro and suppressed the progression of ESCC in vivo. Mechanistically, LINC02154 can bind to IGF2BP2 and activate the PI3K–AKT–mTOR signaling pathway. High expression of LINC02154 is positively correlated with poor prognosis in ESCC patients. In conclusion, LINC02154 functions as an oncogenic factor to facilitate ESCC progression through the IG2BP2–PI3K–AKT–mTOR pathway and has the potential to be a promising diagnostic marker and therapeutic target for ESCC patients.