MicroRNA-215 acts as a tumor suppressor in breast cancer by targeting AKT serine/threonine kinase 1.

There are accumulating reports that microRNAs are dysregulated in a number of human cancer types, and that they may function as tumor suppressors or oncogenes in tumorigenesis and tumor development. microRNA-215 (miR-215) has been identified as a tumor suppressor in epithelial ovarian, pancreatic, non-small cell lung and colon cancer, whereas it may act as an oncogene in gastric and cervical cancer. The role of miR-215 in breast cancer carcinogenesis and progression has yet to be elucidated. In the present study, the expression level of miR-215 was determined in breast cancer tissues and cell lines using the reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The effects of miR-215 overexpression on proliferation and the invasive capacity of breast cancer cells were assessed using MTT and cell invasion assays. The results revealed that miR-215 was significantly downregulated in breast cancer tissues and cell lines. Restoration of miR-215 expression inhibited the proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells. The underlying molecular mechanism for the suppression of proliferation and invasion by miR-215 was investigated. AKT serine/threonine kinase 1 (AKT1) was validated as a novel direct target of miR-215, and the effect of AKT1 small interfering RNA mimicked the effect of miR-215 overexpression in breast cancer cells. These results indicated that miR-215 acted as a tumor suppressor, and that its downregulation in tumor tissues may contribute to the carcinogenesis and progression of breast cancer, indicating that miR-215 may be a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of breast cancer.