Mechanisms of LARP7 in regulating the progression of non-small cell lung cancer

Sep 22, 2026

LARP7 is an RNA-binding protein of the LARP family with reported tumor-suppressing roles in multiple cancers, yet its function in lung cancer remains insufficiently defined. This study evaluates LARP7 expression in lung cancer, examines how LARP7 modulates proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis, and explores underlying molecular mechanisms. LARP7 is low in lung cancer tissues, while overexpression suppresses growth in vitro and tumor progression in vivo. Single-cell RNA-sequencing indicates LARP7 upregulates specific splice variants of FN1 and ADAR, supporting LARP7 as a potential molecular target for NSCLC.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

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Pages18

Reading Time45 min

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Introduction

Methods

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Original Article Mechanisms of LARP7 in regulating the progression of non-small cell lung cancer Jinfeng He\#^, Changlian Li\#, Linxin Liu, Xinman Qian, Fei Li, Long Zhang, Chuting Wang, Haoyu Qin, Rui Ding Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China Contributions: (I) Conception and design: J He, L Liu, X Qian; (II) Administrative support: None; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: C Li; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: J He, C Li, F Li, L Zhang, C Wang, H Qin; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: J He, L Liu, X Qian; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors. \#These authors contributed equally to this work. Correspondence to: Prof. Rui Ding, MD. Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Meishan Road, Hefei 230032, [China. Email: kilthy@ahmu.edu.cn](China. Email: kilthy@ahmu.edu.cn). Background: La ribonucleoprotein domain family member 7 (LARP7) is an RNA-binding protein that belongs to the LARP family, acting as a tumor suppressor in multiple cancers. However, the role of LARP7 in lung cancer cell bio-behaviors and the underlying mechanisms are not well clarified. This study aims to investigate the role of LARP7 in regulating lung cancer phenotypes and its association with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) . Methods: In this study, we first utilized public databases to assess the expression of LARP7 in lung cancer, then explored the effects of LARP7 on tumor growth, as well as the proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis of lung cancer cells, and further investigated the possible mechanisms by which LARP7 regulates lung cancer progression. Results: The results revealed that the expression of LARP7 was low in lung cancer tissues. Further experiments showed that overexpression of LARP7 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion, as well as promoting apoptosis of lung cancer cells in vitro, and inhibited tumor growth in vivo. Mechanistically, single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis revealed that LARP7 overexpression upregulated specific splice variants ofFN1 andADAR in NSCLC cells. Conclusions: The results provide new insights and theoretical support for identifying molecular targets for the diagnosis, prognosis prediction, and treatment of NSCLC. Keywords: LARP7; non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); ASEs; FN1; ADAR; targeted therapies Submitted Mar 08, 2026. Accepted for publication May 21, 2026. Published online Jun 22, 2026. doi: 10.21037/jtd-2026-0579 View this article at: [https://dx.doi.org/10.21037/jtd-2026-0579](https://dx.doi.org/10.21037/jtd-2026-0579) Introduction Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Each year, 2.21 million people are diagnosed with lung cancer, accounting for about 12.20% of all newly diagnosed cancers. It is estimated that about 1.8 million people died of lung cancer annually from 2020 to 2022 in China, accounting for 18.15% of all cancer deaths (1) . Approximately 75% of patients succumb within five years after diagnosis. The high intratumoral heterogeneity (ITH) and the complexity of drug-resistant cancer cells further complicate treatment (2-4) . Therefore, it is important to explore the mechanisms underlying the occurrence of lung ^ ORCID: 0009-0004-7316-0395. © AME Publishing Company. J Thorac Dis 2026;18(7):758 | [https://dx.doi.org/10.21037/jtd-2026-0579](https://dx.doi.org/10.21037/jtd-2026-0579) Page 2 of 18 He et al. Mechanisms of LARP7 in regulating the progression of NSCLC cancer and identify the potential therapeutic targets. RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) are intracellular proteins that bind to RNA, forming ribonucleoprotein complexes that are responsible for regulating, as well as directly participating in, biological processes such as variable splicing, methylation modifica

FAQs

How does LARP7 expression relate to non-small cell lung cancer?

LARP7 expression is low in lung cancer tissues compared with the studied references.

What effects does LARP7 overexpression have on lung cancer cells?

Overexpression of LARP7 inhibits proliferation, migration, and invasion and promotes apoptosis in vitro, and it suppresses tumor growth in vivo.

What mechanism is suggested for how LARP7 regulates NSCLC progression?

Single-cell RNA-sequencing suggests LARP7 overexpression upregulates specific splice variants of FN1 and ADAR in NSCLC cells.

Sep 22, 2026

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