title: miR-21 targets the tumor suppressor RhoB and regulates proliferation, invasion and apoptosis in colorectal cancer cells.
abstract: It has become increasingly clear that microRNAs play an important role in many human diseases including cancer. Here, we show that expression of miR-21 in HEK293 and several colorectal cancer cells was found inversely correlated with ras homolog gene family, member B (RhoB) expression. miR-21 expression significantly suppressed RhoB 3' UTR luciferase-reporter activity, but the inhibitory effect was lost when the putative target sites were mutated. Exogenous miR-21 over-expression mimicked the effect of RhoB knockdown in promoting proliferation and invasion and inhibiting apoptosis, whereas anti-miR-21 or RhoB expression yielded opposite effects, in colorectal cancer cells. These results suggest that miR-21 is a regulator of RhoB expression and RhoB could be a useful target in exploring the potential therapeutic benefits of miR-21 mediated tumor cell behaviors in colorectal cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology/Laboratory of Signal Transduction and Molecular Targeted Therapy, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Qinlin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: Mingxing
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bi
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D016147:Genes, Tumor Suppressor; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D006801:Humans; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness / Q000235:genetics*; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D020743:rhoB GTP-Binding Protein / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; C524940:MIRN21 microRNA, human; D035683:MicroRNAs; D020743:rhoB GTP-Binding Protein