Kang Yaojie, Cui Yanfei, Tan Ming
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Central Hospital of Enshi Autonomous Prefecture, Enshi, Hubei 445000, P.R. China.
Department of Oncology, Central Hospital of Enshi Autonomous Prefecture, Enshi, Hubei 445000, P.R. China.
Oncol Lett. 2020 Apr;19(4):2902-2908. doi: 10.3892/ol.2020.11401. Epub 2020 Feb 17.
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is an epithelial malignancy of the head and neck that is prevalent in China. The present study investigated the molecular mechanisms of microRNA-212 (miR-212) and E74-like factor 3 (ELF3) in NPC cell lines and tissues. Using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, the present study identified that miR-212 expression was downregulated in NPC cell lines and tissues. Furthermore, an elevated expression level of miR-212 was revealed to inhibit NPC cell proliferation, as determined using a cell counting kit-8 assay . ELF3 was identified as a direct target of miR-212 in NPC cells by a luciferase reporter assay. Additionally, the expression levels of miR-212 and ELF3 were negatively correlated in NPC tissues. The expression levels of ELF3 and miR-212 were associated with metastasis and TNM stage in patients with NPC. In summary, the present study indicated that miR-212 was downregulated in NPC and suppressed cell proliferation. This suggested that the miR-212/ELF3 axis may serve as a novel target for the diagnosis and treatment of NPC.
鼻咽癌（NPC）是一种在中国较为常见的头颈部上皮性恶性肿瘤。本研究调查了微小RNA-212（miR-212）和E74样因子3（ELF3）在NPC细胞系和组织中的分子机制。通过逆转录定量PCR，本研究发现NPC细胞系和组织中miR-212表达下调。此外，使用细胞计数试剂盒-8检测法确定，miR-212表达水平升高可抑制NPC细胞增殖。通过荧光素酶报告基因检测法确定ELF3是NPC细胞中miR-212的直接靶标。此外，NPC组织中miR-212和ELF3的表达水平呈负相关。ELF3和miR-212的表达水平与NPC患者的转移和TNM分期相关。总之，本研究表明miR-212在NPC中表达下调并抑制细胞增殖。这表明miR-212/ELF3轴可能成为NPC诊断和治疗的新靶点。
