OBJECTIVE: Neuroblastoma(NB) is the most common malignant solid tumor in children,accounting for about 7% of childhood tumors.Long noncoding RNA(lncRNA) is recently reported to involve in tumor development.However,less study was conducted in NB about lncRNA function,mechanism and clinical prognostic significance.The present research was to study the expression of long noncoding RNA LINC00839 in NB and to investigate its effects on NB cell proliferation and NB prognosis in children.METHODS: Forty children diagnosed as neuroblastoma between May 2015 and December 2016 in Beijing Children's Hospital were enrolled.The expression of LINC00839 in different stages,classifications and MYCN status were analyzed in both NB public database and collected NB samples.The correlation between LINC00839 expression and survival time in children was further explored based on public database.To investigate the role of LINC00839 in NB proliferation,LINC00839 was knocked down in neuroblastoma cell line SH-SY5Y by siRNA and cell proliferation was then detected by MTT.RESULTS: According to the GSE62564 dataset,LINC00839 expression increased with NB tumor stage rising and the expression in Ⅳ stage was higher than those in Ⅰ (q=7.045,P<0.001),Ⅱ (q=4.832,P=0.006) and Ⅳs(q=6.570,P<0.001) stages.The expression level of LINC00839 in high-risk NB tumors was obviously higher than those in low-risk group(t=8.068,P<0.001).Moreover,LINC00839 expression was higher in MYCN amplified group than those in MYCN non-amplified group(t=11.620,P<0.001).In addition,the similar expression trends of LINC00839 in different NB stages(q=4.192,P=0.038) and MYCN status(t=7.366,P=0.006) were further confirmed in GSE16237 dataset.In clinical samples,LINC00839 expression was increased with NB tumor stage rising and its expression in stage Ⅳ was obviously higher than those in stage Ⅰ(q=3.953,P=0.038).In SH-SY5Y cells,cell proliferation was suppressed by siRNA after LINC00839 was silenced for 48 hours(q=0.498,P=0.026) and 72 hours(q=0.570,P=0.021).For prognosis,in high LINC00839 expression group,the event-free survival and overall survival rate was lower than those in low LINC00839 expression(χ2=16.83,P<0.001; χ2=43.11,P<0.001).CONCLUSIONS: LINC00839 is highly expressed in NB,which may promote the malignant progression of NB through cell proliferation.Meanwhile,LINC00839 can evaluate the prognosis and survival of children with NB.It is a potential therapeutic target and prognostic indicator of NB. ©2019, Editorial Board of Chinese Journal of Cancer Prevention and Treatment. All right reserved.