Targeting zeb2 by microrna-129 in non-small cell lung cancer suppresses cell proliferation, invasion and migration via regulating wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and epithelial–mesenchymal transition

Abstract

Introduction: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a common cause of deaths all over the world. Emerging evidence has indicated that microRNA (miR) play key roles in NSCLC progression. We aimed to determine the functions of miR-129 in NSCLC. miR-129 was dramatically downregulated in NSCLC tissue samples and cells. The decreased miR-129 was found to be associated with poorer prognosis and malefic phenotype of NSCLC patients. We demonstrated that miR-129 upregulation could inhibit NSCLC cell growth. Furthermore, we also sought the molecular mechanism by which miR-129 repressed NSCLC development. Methods: QRT-PCR was applied to detect the expressions of miR-129 in 51 pairs of NSCLC tissue samples. We further performed the Kaplan–Meier analysis to determine the association between miR-129 expressions and the survival rate of NSCLC patients. We then measured the expression levels of miR-129 in NSCLC cell lines. After that, MTT assays were performed to determine the influence of miR-129 on A549 cell proliferation. Transwell assay was then conducted to explore the biological functions of miR-129 in invasion and migration of NSCLC cells. Results: Results showed that ZEB2 was directly targeted by miR-129 in NSCLC cell lines. Moreover, miR-129 restoration could inhibit EMT and Wnt/β-catenin in NSCLC cell lines. Conclusion: In short, all these results indicated that miR-129/ZEB2 axis maybe a useful diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for NSCLC treatment.