Fig. 4

ZEB1-AS1 sponges miR-133a-3p. a Potential lncRNAs targeting miR-133a-3p were illustrated. b Luciferase reporter assay was employed to screen out the lncRNAs for miR-133a-3p. c ZEB1-AS1 expression in TC tissues and the relevance of ZEB1-AS1 with miR-133a-3p were analyzed. d ZEB1-AS1 expression in TC cell lines and normal cell line was examined through qRT-PCR. e The binding site between ZEB1-AS1 and miR-133a-3p was predicted by starBase. f Luciferase reporter assay validated the combination between ZEB1-AS1 and miR-133a-3p. g A positive relationship between ZEB1-AS1 and LPAR3/EGFR was revealed. h ZEB1-AS1 expression in sh-ZEB1-AS1#1/2-transfected cells was detected via qRT-PCR. Sh-NC was a negative control. i, j The mRNA and protein expression levels of LPAR3 or EGFR were examined through qRT-PCR and western blot analyses in TPC-1 and BCPAP cells transfected with sh-ZEB1-AS1#1/2 or sh-NC. k The effect of ZEB1-AS1 silence on cell proliferation was examined via colony formation. l Cell apoptosis was evaluated in transfected cells via flow cytometry analysis. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001