title: Upregulation of microRNA-23a regulates proliferation and apoptosis by targetingAPAF-1in laryngeal carcinoma.
abstract: MicroRNA-23a (miR-23a) is a potential biomarker for laryngeal cancer. Apoptotic protease activating factor 1 (APAF-1)was recently demonstrated to be a target of miR-23a. However, whether miR-23a exerts its effects viaAPAF-1in laryngeal cancer, remains unknown. In the present study, miR-23a expression was detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR).APAF-1mRNA and protein expression levels were assayed by RT-qPCR and western blotting, respectively. Binding of miR-23a toAPAF-1was monitored by a luciferase reporter assay. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function studies were performed in order to investigate the roles of miR-23a andAPAF-1in Hep2 cell proliferation and apoptosis. miR-23a andAPAF-1were found to be significantly upregulated and downregulated, respectively, in laryngeal cancer tissues, and there was a significant negative correlation betweenAPAF-1and miR-23a expression. The results of the luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that miR-23a bound directly to theAPAF-1mRNA 3'-untranslated region. Ectopic expression of miR-23a and knockdown ofAPAF-1significantly promoted cell proliferation and colony formation, and inhibited early apoptosis in Hep2 cells. In conclusion, miR-23a acts as an oncogenic regulator in laryngeal carcinoma by directly targetingAPAF-1, and may be a useful biomarker in the diagnosis and treatment of laryngeal carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Wen
authors.initials: XW
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Y E
authors.initials: YE
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Kai-Lai
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, No. 463 Hospital of PLA, Shenyang, Liaoning 110007, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zhen-Ming
authors.initials: ZM
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110001, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wei-Neng
authors.initials: WN
authors.lastname: Fu
keywords: apoptosis; apoptotic protease activating factor 1; laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma; microRNA-23a; proliferation