Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) is one of the most\nabundant, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in normal tissues. This lncRNA is highly conserved\namong mammalian species, and based on in vitro results, has been reported to regulate alternative\npre-mRNA splicing and gene expression. However, Malat1 knockout mice develop and grow\nnormally, and do not show alterations in alternative splicing. While MALAT1 was originally\ndescribed as a prognostic marker of lung cancer metastasis, emerging evidence has linked this\nlncRNA to other cancers, such as breast cancer, prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, glioma, and\nleukemia. The role described for MALAT1 is dependent on the cancer types and the experimental\nmodel systems. Notably, different or opposite phenotypes resulting from different strategies for\ninactivating MALAT1 have been observed, which led to distinct models for MALAT1â??s functions\nand mechanisms of action in cancer and metastasis. In this review, we reflect on different\nexperimental strategies used to study MALAT1â??s functions, and discuss the current mechanistic\nmodels of this highly abundant and conserved lncRNA.
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