Open Access

ARTICLE

Downregulation of MicroRNA-449 Promotes Migration and Invasion of Breast Cancer Cells by Targeting Tumor Protein D52 (TPD52)

Zhiling Zhang, Jiawei Wang, Runfang Gao, Xuan Yang, Yafen Zhang, Jie Li, Jing Zhang, Xingjuan Zhao, Chunfang Xi, Xiaoting Lu

Department of Breast Surgery, Shanxi Provincial People’s Hospital, Taiyuan, P.R. China

Oncology Research 2017, 25(5), 753-761. https://doi.org/10.3727/096504016X14772342320617

Abstract

Our study aimed to investigate whether microRNA-449 (miR-449) plays a key role in regulating the migration and invasion of breast cancer cells via targeting tumor protein D52 (TPD52). The results of the qRT-PCR and Western blotting showed that, in comparison with normal breast tissues and cells, miR-449 was significantly downregulated in breast cancer tissues and cells, while TPD52 was markedly upregulated. After transfection with an miR-449 inhibitor, suppression of miR-449 significantly promoted cell migration and invasion. Also, when miR-449 was overexpressed by transfection with miR-449 mimics, E-cadherin expression significantly increased, and the expression of N-cadherin and vimentin were markedly decreased, whereas the opposite effects were obtained when miR-449 was suppressed by transfection with an miR-449 inhibitor. TPD52 was also confirmed as the direct target of miR-449 via luciferase reporter analysis. Knockdown of TPD52 significantly alleviated the effects of miR-449 overexpression on cell migration and invasion, as well as the expression of E-cadherin, N-cadherin, and vimentin. Our results indicate that downregulation of miR-449 may promote the migration and invasion of breast cancer cells by targeting TPD52. miR-449 may serve as a potential target in the therapy of breast cancer.

---

Keywords

---