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miR-23a-3p promotes the development of colon cancer by inhibiting the expression of NDRG4

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Abstract

Purpose

Previous studies have found that miR-23a-3p, a diagnostic marker for colon cancer (CC), is upregulated in primary CC from stage I/II patients. Nevertheless, the specific functions and molecular mechanisms of miR-23a-3p in colon cancer remain unclear.

Methods

The expression levels of miR-23a-3p and NDRG4 were analyzed by western blot and RT‒qPCR assays. Cell viability and proliferation were measured by CCK8 and colony formation assays. Cell apoptosis was assessed by flow cytometry. Cell migration and invasion were detected by transwell assay. Target binding was detected by luciferase reporter assay.

Results

miR-23a-3p was dramatically elevated in CC tissues and cells. In HT29 and SW480 cells, downregulation of miR-23a-3p hampered cell proliferation, migration, and invasion while increasing cell apoptosis. The effects of miR-23a-3p silencing on CC progression were slowed by NDRG4 downregulation.

Conclusions

miR-23a-3p promoted CC progression by modulating the expression of NDRG4. This study demonstrated the mechanism of miR-23a-3p in CC, which may offer a new target for CC therapy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General Surgery, The Affiliated Huaian No.1 People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, No.1 Huanghe Xi Road, Huaian, 223300, Jiangsu, China

    Hao Zuo, Shiqi Liu, Xiangwei Li & Guowei Hou

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  1. Hao Zuo
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  2. Shiqi Liu
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  3. Xiangwei Li
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  4. Guowei Hou
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Contributions

HZ and GH are responsible for the conception and design of the study. HZ, SL XL and GH contributed to the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of the data. SL and XL provided the tissue samples. SL helped in the follow-up of the patients. GH helped in reviewing the histopathology slides. All authors approved the final manuscript version to be published. GH is the guarantor of the article.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Guowei Hou.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval

The study was approved by the Ethical Committee of The Affiliated Huaian No.1 People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University and conducted in accordance with the ethical standards.

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Cite this article

Zuo, H., Liu, S., Li, X. et al. miR-23a-3p promotes the development of colon cancer by inhibiting the expression of NDRG4. Clin Transl Oncol 25, 933–940 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12094-022-02996-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12094-022-02996-4

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