MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a large group of post-transcriptional gene regulators that potentially play a critical role in tumorigenesis. Increasing evidences indicate that miR-744 deregulated in numerous human cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
However, its role in HCC carcinogenesis remains poorly defined. In this study, we investigated the roles of miR-744 in tumor growth of HCC.
Methods:
Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was conducted to detect the expression of miR-744 and Immunohistochemistry was performed to detect expression of c-Myc in HCC specimens and adjacent normal tissues.
The biological functions of miR-744 were determined by cell proliferation and cell cycle assay. Furthermore, cell lines transfected with miR-744 mimics were analyzed in vitro.
Luciferase reporter assays was performed to confirm whether miR-744 regulated the expression of c-Myc.
Results:
Our results showed that the expression of miR-744 was frequently down-regulated in both HCC tissues and cells. Furthermore, restoration of miR-744 in HCC cells was statistically correlated with decrease of cell growth and restored G1 accumulation.
Luciferase assay and Western blot analysis revealed that c-Myc is a direct target of miR-744. Down-regulation of miR-744 and up-regulation of c-Myc were detected in HCC specimens compared with adjacent normal tissues.
Moreover, restoration of miR-744 rescues c-Myc induced HCC proliferation.
Conclusions:
Our data suggest that miR-744 exerts its tumor suppressor function by targeting c-Myc, leading to the inhibition of HCC cell growth. miR-744 may serve as a potentially useful target for the miRNA-based therapies of HCC in the future.
Author: Feng LinRuliang DingShuang ZhengDongyi XingWeiwen HongZhijun ZhouJie Shen
Credits/Source: Cancer Cell International 2014, 14:58
Published on: 2014-06-22
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