# Unraveling lncRNA TRG-AS1: a novel biomarker for poor prognosis of gastric cancer and key to regulating malignant behaviors by targeting miR-873-5p

## TL;DR

This study identifies TRG-AS1 as a new biomarker for poor gastric cancer prognosis and shows it regulates cancer cell behavior by targeting miR-873-5p.

## Contribution

TRG-AS1 is newly identified as a prognostic biomarker and regulator of gastric cancer progression via miR-873-5p.

## Key findings

- TRG-AS1 is downregulated in gastric cancer tissues and linked to poor prognosis indicators.
- TRG-AS1 negatively regulates miR-873-5p as a competitive endogenous RNA.
- Overexpression of TRG-AS1 inhibits cancer cell metastasis and proliferation.

## Abstract

To alleviate patient stress and advance gastric cancer research, this study aims to investigate the potential association between aberrant expression of TRG-AS1 and gastric cancer, and to examine its potential impact on the biological behaviors of gastric cancer cells.

To find out how TRG-AS1 is expressed in the tissues and cells of gastric cancer, real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was employed. The connection between TRG-AS1 and pathological features, as well as its prognostic importance, were examined using the Chi-square test and Cox regression analysis. The dual luciferase reporting assay was utilized to confirm the targeting of TRG-AS1 and miR-873-5p. Transwell assay and CCK-8 test were used to identify the roles that TRG-AS1 plays in cell metastasis and proliferation, respectively.

Research has revealed a downregulation of TRG-AS1 in the tissues and cells, which is strongly correlated with the differentiation, TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, depth of invasion, and patient survival rate in gastric cancer. The binding sites exists between miR-873-5p and TRG-AS1, and TRG-AS1 has the ability to negatively control miR-873-5p by acting as a competitive endogenous RNA. When TRG-AS1 was overexpressed, the malignant behavioral activity of gastric cancer cells was significantly decreased; however, the inhibitory effect was reversed when miR-873-5p was overexpressed.

TRG-AS1 is a potential predictor of poor prognosis in gastric cancer patients and targets miR-873-5p to inhibit the progression of cancer.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s41065-025-00459-8.