Fig. 6

circTOLLIP relieves repression of miR-516a-5p on PBX3. a-b PBX3 expression in HLF and 97H cells with circTOLLIP overexpression or knockdown. c-d qRT–PCR analysis of PBX3 and HIST3H2A in HLF and 97H cells transfected with miR-516a-5p mimic or inhibitor. e PBX3 protein levels in HLF and 97H cells transfected miR-516a-5p mimic or inhibitor. f-g PBX3 expression in HLF and 97H cells transfected with miR-516a-5p mimic alone or in combination with circTOLLIP. h Luciferase reporter activity of PBX3-3’UTR in 97H cells cotransfected with miR-516a-5p mimic or inhibitor. i Luciferase reporter activity of PBX3-3’UTR in 97H cells with circTOLLIP overexpression or knockdown. j Representative images of PBX3 IHC staining in 138 pairs of HCC tissues and statistical analysis of the IHC scores (k). l The correlation between PBX3 expression and OS by Kaplan–Meier analysis. Low PBX3 group: n = 40, high PBX3 group: n = 65. m Correlation analysis between circTOLLIP and PBX3 expression in HCC tumors