Objective To investigate the role and regulatory mechanism of LINC00657 in the progression of cervical cancer. Methods Bioinformatics analysis predicted potential binding sites between LINC00657 and miR-30a-5p and between miR-30a-5p and Skp2. These sites were verified by using RNA immunoprecipitation and dual-luciferase reporter experiments. LINC00657, miR-30a-5p, and Skp2 mRNA expression levels in cervical cancer tissues and cell lines were assessed by utilizing RT-qPCR. Western blot analysis was employed to examine the protein levels of Skp2 in cells and subcutaneous xenograft tumor models in nude mice. Immunohistochemistry was applied to analyze Skp2 expression in animal tissues. The cellular processes of cervical cancer cell lines were evaluated through CCK-8, scratch, and Transwell assays. Results LINC00657 and Skp2 presented binding sites for miR-30a-5p. In cervical cancer, LINC00657 and Skp2 showed high expression levels (P<0.05), whereas miR-30a-5p displayed low expression (P<0.05). Functional experiments demonstrated that linc00657 upregulates Skp2 expression, a process that is dependent on its sequestration of miR-30a-5p. Conclusion LINC00657 promoted the malignant progression of cervical cancer by upregulating Skp2 expression through specifically sequestering miR-30a-5p, thereby relieving its inhibitory effect on the target gene Skp2.

Objective To comprehensively analyze the circulatory RNA-long non-coding RNA-microRNA-messenger RNA(circRNA-lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA)network in cervical cancer and construct a prognostic model.Methods Differential and key genes were ana-lyzed using bioinformatics based on data from The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)and Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)databases.Prognostic mRNA models were constructed based on TCGA database using univariate,Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator(LASSO),and multivariate Cox regression analyses and validated using the GEO database.The R package and Cystoscape software were used to construct a nomogram model and competing endogenous(ceRNA)network of circRNA-lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA in cervical cancer.Results A prognostic model including five mRNAs was constructed using univariate,LASSO,and multivariate Cox regression analyses,which had area under the receiver operating characteristic curve AUC values of 0.71,0.71,and 0.70 at 1,2,and 3 years,respec-tively,indicating its sensitivity and specificity in cervical cancer prognosis.Predictive results were validated using the GSE44001 dataset.The C-index of the nomogram model for this prognostic model was 0.707.In this study,a ceRNA network comprising 39 circRNAs,27 lncRNAs,12 miRNAs,and five mRNAs was constructed.Conclusion The network constructed in this study can help comprehensively elucidate the mechanism of ceRNAs in cervical cancer,and the construction of prognostic and Nomogram models can predict patient prog-nosis.