Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a kind of translational-repressor RNAs composed of more than 200 nucleotides and formerly considered as “transcriptional noise”. Recently studies have shown that lncRNAs could bind to multiple biomolecules such as DNA, transcription factors, RNA, chromatin complexes and proteins, and regulate target gene expression at multi-levels, thus playing an essential role in human tumors. DLX6-AS1, a recently discovered oncogenic lncRNA, is highly expressed in various human tumors, including lung cancer, liver cancer and pancreatic cancer. This paper mainly reviewed the regulatory mechanism of DLX6-AS1 as a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) in tumor cell proliferation, cell apoptosis, angiogenesis, epithelial–mesenchymal transformation, chemotherapy resistance and metabolic changes. Furthermore, the translational value of DLX6-AS1 in cancer was also elucidated, which suggested its potential as a diagnostic or prognostic biomarker in cancer. In summary, this present article not only makes an in-depth analysis of the expression changes and carcinogenic mechanism of DLX6-AS1 in various human cancers, but also provides a new breakthrough for the diagnosis and treatment of cancers.

长链非编码 RNA (lncRNA) 是一种由 200 多个核苷酸组成的翻译抑制 RNA，以前被认为是“转录噪声”。最近的研究表明，lncRNAs可以与DNA、转录因子、RNA、染色质复合物和蛋白质等多种生物分子结合，多层次调控靶基因的表达，从而在人类肿瘤中发挥重要作用。DLX6-AS1是最近发现的致癌lncRNA，在多种人类肿瘤中高度表达，包括肺癌、肝癌和胰腺癌。本文主要综述了DLX6-AS1作为竞争性内源性RNA（ceRNA）在肿瘤细胞增殖、细胞凋亡、血管生成、上皮-间质转化、化疗耐药和代谢变化中的调控机制。此外，还阐明了 DLX6-AS1 在癌症中的转化价值，这表明它具有作为癌症诊断或预后生物标志物的潜力。综上所述，本文不仅对DLX6-AS1在多种人类癌症中的表达变化及致癌机制进行了深入分析，也为癌症的诊断和治疗提供了新的突破。