TY - JOUR AB - Gastric cancer (GC) is the fifth most common cancer in the world, with 952,000 new cases diagnosed in 2012. Tumor metastasis is the major cause of cancer recurrence and death. miR-15b-5p has been reported to be dysregulated in numerous types of cancers. However, the role of miR-15b-5p in GC metastasis remains unclear. An miRNA microarray was adopted to analyze the miRNA expression profile. By employing quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), miR-15b-5p expression levels were detected in GC cell lines, tissues and plasma samples. In addition, the effects of miR-15b-5p on cell proliferation, migration and invasion were studied by applying gain-of-function approaches. Moreover, the target of miR-15b-5p was assessed by dual-luciferase assay, and the mechanism underlying the regulation of GC metastasis by miR-15b-5p was assessed by rescue experiments. The results revealed that miR-15b-5p was upregulated in GC cell lines, tissues and plasma samples. A high plasma level of miR-15b-5p was correlated with distant tumor metastasis. In addition, overexpression of miR‑15b-5p in GC cells promoted cell proliferation, migration, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Moreover, progestin and adipoQ receptor family member 3 (PAQR3) was found to be a direct target of miR-15b-5p and re-expression of PAQR3 in miR-15b-5p-overexpressing GC cells partly attenuated the proliferation, migration and invasion. These findings revealed that miR-15b-5p promotes the metastasis of GC cells through PAQR3 and may represent a potential biomarker of GC. AD - Central Laboratory, The Affiliated Jiangning Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210000, P.R. China Department of Oncology, The Affiliated Jiangning Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210000, P.R. China AU - Zhao,Chengcheng AU - Li,Yan AU - Chen,Gang AU - Wang,Fen AU - Shen,Zhili AU - Zhou,Rongping DA - 2017/07/01 DO - 10.3892/or.2017.5673 EP - 358 IS - 1 JO - Oncol Rep KW - miR-15b-5p gastric cancer PAQR3 metastasis PY - 2017 SN - 1021-335X 1791-2431 SP - 352 ST - Overexpression of miR-15b-5p promotes gastric cancer metastasis by regulating PAQR3 T2 - Oncology Reports TI - Overexpression of miR-15b-5p promotes gastric cancer metastasis by regulating PAQR3 UR - https://doi.org/10.3892/or.2017.5673 VL - 38 ER -