Ji Xuemei, Liu Yanqing, Kao Xiaoming, Chen Xiaorui, Zhao Yi, Zhang Shuyan, Chen Liya, Yu Mengchao, Wei Juan, Yang Zhao, Wang Fangyu
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nanjing School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, China.
Department of Gastroenterology, Baotou Central Hospital, Baotou, China.
J Cell Biochem. 2020 Aug;121(8-9):3871-3881. doi: 10.1002/jcb.29543. Epub 2019 Nov 6.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a type of malignant cancer that has become particularly prevalent worldwide. It is of crucial importance to CRC treatment that the underlying molecular mechanism of CRC progression is determined. The NRAS gene is an important small G protein that is involved in various biological processes, including cancers. NRAS is an oncogene in many neoplasms but its function and regulation in CRC have seldom been investigated. In this study, it was uncovered that the NRAS protein was significantly upregulated in CRC tissues. According to a bioinformatics prediction, we identified that miR-144 may target NRAS to suppress its expression. In vitro experiments indicated that miR-144 decreased NRAS expression in different CRC cell lines (SW480, LoVo, and Caco2). By inhibiting NRAS, miR-144 repress SW480 cell proliferation and migration. Moreover, miR-144 decelerated the growth of SW480 xenograft tumors in vivo by targeting NRAS. In summary, our results identified a novel miR-144-NRAS axis in CRC that could promote the research and treatment of CRC.
结直肠癌（CRC）是一种恶性肿瘤，在全球范围内已变得尤为普遍。确定CRC进展的潜在分子机制对CRC治疗至关重要。NRAS基因是一种重要的小G蛋白，参与包括癌症在内的各种生物学过程。NRAS在许多肿瘤中是一种癌基因，但其在CRC中的功能和调控很少被研究。在本研究中，发现NRAS蛋白在CRC组织中显著上调。根据生物信息学预测，我们确定miR-144可能靶向NRAS以抑制其表达。体外实验表明，miR-144降低了不同CRC细胞系（SW480、LoVo和Caco2）中NRAS的表达。通过抑制NRAS，miR-144抑制SW480细胞的增殖和迁移。此外，miR-144通过靶向NRAS在体内减缓了SW480异种移植肿瘤的生长。总之，我们的结果在CRC中确定了一种新的miR-144-NRAS轴，这可能促进CRC的研究和治疗。
