Abstract: Objective To investigate the influences and mechanism of circHERC4 on the proliferation,migration and invasion of colorectal cancer (CRC) cells.Methods The CRC tissues and corresponding paracancerous tissues of 68 CRC patients who underwent surgical treatment in The First Affiliated Hospital of Shaoyang University from June 2020 to December 2021 were collected.Real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression levels of circHERC4,miR-105-5p and cellular S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (Skp2) mRNA in tissues and cells;Western blot was applied to detect the expression of Skp2 protein in cells;CCK-8,plate cell cloning assay,scratch healing assay,and Transwell assay were applied to detect cell proliferation,migration,and invasion,respectively.Results The expressions of circHERC4 and Skp2 mRNA were up-regulated in CRC tissues,while the expression of miR-105-5p was down-regulated (P<0.05),the expression levels of circHERC4,miR-105-5p and Skp2 mRNA in CRC tissues were correlated with each other (P<0.05).Knockdown of circHERC4 or overexpression of miR-105-5p could inhibit the proliferation,migration and invasion of HCT116 cells and the expression of Skp2 in cells (P<0.05),while overexpression of Skp2 could partially reverse the inhibitory effects of miR-105-5p overexpression on the proliferation,migration and invasion of HCT116 cells (P<0.05),and inhibiting the expression of miR-105-5p could partially reverse the inhibitory effects of knockdown of circHERC4 on the proliferation,migration and invasion of HCT116 cells (P<0.05).Conclusion Knockdown of circHERC4 can inhibit the proliferation,migration and invasion of HCT116 cells by regulating the miR-105-5p/Skp2 axis.

Key words: circHERC4, miR-105-5p, cellular S-phase kinase-associated protein 2, proliferation, migration, invasion, colorectal cancer