microRNA-20a enhances the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of colorectal cancer cells by modulating matrix metalloproteinases

Xu,Tao; Jing,Changqing; Shi,Yulong; Miao,Ruizheng; Peng,Lipan; Kong,Shuai; Ma,Yan; Li,Leping

doi:10.3892/etm.2015.2538

microRNA-20a enhances the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of colorectal cancer cells by modulating matrix metalloproteinases

Authors:
- Tao Xu
- Changqing Jing
- Yulong Shi
- Ruizheng Miao
- Lipan Peng
- Shuai Kong
- Yan Ma
- Leping Li
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Affiliations: Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250021, P.R. China
Published online on: June 3, 2015 https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2015.2538
Pages: 683-688

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Abstract

The mortality rates associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) are high due to metastasis. Epithelial‑to‑mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a key step in tumor metastasis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the function of microRNA‑20a (miR‑20a) in EMT. The expression of miR‑20a was analyzed in CRC tissues and cell lines using the reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Plasmids containing miR‑20a short hairpin RNA and miR‑20a mimics were transfected into SW620 and LS174T cell lines, respectively. Cell counting kit‑8, Transwell® and wound healing assays were performed to assess the effects of miR‑20a on cell proliferation, invasion and migration. EMT markers and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) were identified using western blotting. The results showed that increased expression of miR‑20a in CRC tissues was associated with tumor invasion and lymph node metastasis (P<0.05). Further experiments indicated that miR‑20a‑knockdown inhibited the proliferation, invasion and migration of CRC cells, upregulated the expression of vimentin and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases‑2 (TIMP‑2) and downregulated the expression of E‑cadherin, MMP‑2 and MMP‑9. The opposite effects were observed in CRC cell lines overexpressing miR‑20a. In conclusion, these results have shown that the upregulation of miR‑20a suppresses TIMP‑2 expression, which subsequently increases the expression of MMP‑2 and MMP‑9, thereby promoting the EMT of CRC cells. These findings suggest that miR-20a represents a potential therapeutic target for patients with CRC.

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