Interaction of circular RNAs with splicing factors in cervical cancer: Modulation, interplay and theranostics (Review)

Cervical cancer (CCa) is a worldwide health concern, particularly in low‑ and middle‑income countries. Human papillomavirus infection is a key risk factor in the development of CCa. Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs), including microRNAs (miRNAs), circular RNAs (circRNAs) and long ncRNAs (lncRNAs), are important regulators of cancer progression, including CCa, offering potential therapeutic targets. Compared with lncRNAs and miRNAs, circRNAs are the least studied ncRNAs. circRNAs, distinguished by a closed‑loop structure and resistance to exonucleases, serve diverse roles in cancer, functioning as miRNA sponges and regulating gene expression. circRNAs are produced primarily by back‑splicing and comprise both intronic and exonic sequences. Notably, circRNAs are key regulators of alternative splicing, as they are able to enhance the expression of splicing factors (SFs) by sequestering miRNAs. Despite their importance, the interactions between circRNAs and SFs in CCa remain to be elucidated. The present review highlights the interplay between circRNAs and SFs in CCa pathogenesis; it describes the influence of SFs on circRNA production, the regulatory feedback between circRNAs and SFs, and the potential implications of this interaction in CCa diagnostics and therapeutics. To conduct the present review a targeted literature search was conducted across PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar using defined search terms to identify peer‑reviewed studies published between 2006 and 2024. The findings were synthesized to explore the mechanistic insights and translational implications of circRNA‑SF interactions in CCa.