# Non-Coding RNA-GATA Axis: Mechanisms and Implications in Cancer Progression and Metastases

## TL;DR

This review explores how GATA transcription factors and non-coding RNAs interact to influence cancer progression and metastasis, suggesting new therapeutic strategies.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a novel regulatory axis between GATA factors and non-coding RNAs in cancer.

## Key findings

- GATA factors regulate key oncogenic processes like EMT and metastasis.
- Non-coding RNAs modulate GATA activity, impacting tumor growth and dissemination.
- The interplay between GATA and non-coding RNAs presents potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets.

## Abstract

GATA transcription factors are well known to regulate diverse biological processes of growth, differentiation, development and immunity. Aberrant mutations in these critical regulators result in cancer initiation and progression where they drive different hallmarks of cancer. Non-coding RNAs also regulate gene expression through post transcriptional inactivation or translational block and have been implicated in tumor growth and dissemination. Despite their individual importance, the interplay between GATA transcription factors and non-coding RNAs in cancer remains largely unexplored. This review discusses how these two regulatory systems work together to influence cancer development and progression. Understanding the GATA-non-coding RNA network may reveal new molecular targets and help in designing more effective therapeutic strategies in the future.

GATA transcription factors, defined by their zinc finger DNA-binding domains, are central regulators of tissue development. They modulate gene expression by activating or repressing transcription, thereby coordinating cellular differentiation and cell cycle exit to maintain homeostasis. In progenitor cells, GATA factors promote proliferation, whereas in differentiating cells, they drive maturation and induce cell cycle arrest. Dysregulation of GATA factors has been linked to tumorigenesis and contributes significantly to cancer progression and metastasis. Mutations in GATA factor genes correlate with poor prognosis in multiple cancers, where they influence key oncogenic processes, including sustained proliferative signaling, activation of epithelial–mesenchymal transition, angiogenesis, resistance to cell death, and immune escape. Importantly, their context-dependent roles across tumor types highlight the complexity of their functions in malignancies. Meanwhile, non-coding RNAs have emerged as critical regulators of gene expression, acting as either tumor suppressors or oncogenes by modulating chromatin dynamics, transcription factor activity, and mRNA stability. Despite this, the regulation of GATA transcriptional activity by non-coding RNAs remains largely unexplored. This review highlights the role of GATA factors in regulating EMT and metastasis and focuses on the interplay between non-coding RNAs and GATA transcription factors in cancer progression, proposing a novel regulatory axis with potential implications for biomarker discovery and therapeutic targeting.