Expression of ALKBH3 and its effects on proliferation, migration, and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells: bioinformatics analysis and <i>in vitro</i> and <i>in vivo</i> experiments

Objective: To use bioinformatics analysis and in vitro and in vivo experiments to study the biological role of ALKBH3 in lung adenocarcinoma. Methods: Bioinformatics analysis of ALKBH3 was performed using databases. ALKBH3 expression in lung adenocarcinoma and adjacent tissues was detected by qPCR (quantitative polymerase chain reaction), western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Stable transformed A549 cells with low expression of ALKBH3 were constructed. The effects of knockdown of ALKBH3 on the proliferation, migration, and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells were detected by CCK-8, cell scratch, and transwell invasion assays, respectively. The effects of ALKBH3 on the proliferation of A549 cells in vivo were detected using subcutaneous tumorigenesis in nude mice. Results: Bioinformatics analysis showed that ALKBH3 has diagnostic value in tumors such as lung adenocarcinoma, the expression of ALKBH3 is related to immune cell infiltration, ALKBH3 interacts with ASCC family molecules, and ALKBH3 is involved in the demethylation of DNA and RNA. The expression of ALKBH3 in lung adenocarcinoma was higher than that in adjacent tissues (P &lt; 0.05). CCK-8, wound healing and transwell assays showed that ALKBH3 knockdown significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of A549 cells in vitro (P &lt; 0.01). ALKBH3 knockdown also significantly inhibited the growth of subcutaneous tumors in nude mice (P &lt; 0.01). Conclusions: ALKBH3 is a potential diagnostic marker for lung adenocarcinoma. Results in vivo and in vitro showed that knocking down ALKBH3 could inhibit the proliferation, migration, invasion, and subcutaneous tumorigenesis of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells.