However, several limitations need to be addressed in our future studies: 1) The specific mechanism of NF-κB on lncRNA PURPL expression should be confirmed; 2) The function of lncRNA PURPL-miR-137-ZBTB7A in GC progression should be verified in animal models; 3) More clinical samples need to be collected for evaluating the significance of lncRNA PURPL-miR-137-ZBTB7A on GC diagnosis and prognostic evaluation. Here, ZBTB7A is linked to gastric cancer.