miR-125a-3p suppresses the growth and progression of papillary thyroid carcinoma cell by targeting MMP11.

The dysregulation of miR-125a-3p has been observed in multiple tumor types. Nevertheless, the function of miR-125a-3p in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is yet to be explored. Herein, we find that miR-125a-3p is markedly downregulated in PTC tissues, and its level is inversely related to the histological grade of PTC. Upregulation of miR-125a-3p suppresses the pulmonary metastatic ability as well as the tumor growth of PTC cell in vivo. Consistently, the colony formation ability and other metastasis-related traits of PTC cell are inhibited by miR-125a-3p transfection in vitro. In addition, we identify that matrix metalloprotease 11 (MMP11) is the direct target gene of miR-125a-3p, and that miR-125a-3p inhibits cell viability, migration, and invasiveness of PTC cell by reducing MMP11 expression in vitro. Together, these data testify that the miR-125a-3p/MMP11 axis plays vital roles in the growth and progression of human PTC cells.