Inhibiting microRNA-301b suppresses cell growth and targets RNF38 in cervical carcinoma.

It has been reported microRNA-301b (miR-301b) was involved in the tumorigenesis of some cancers, but it has not been investigated in cervical carcinoma yet. In this study, miR-301b was found significantly upregulated in cervical carcinoma, and patients with high miR-301b expression had a shorter overall survival. When miR-301b was knocked down in cervical carcinoma cells, the cell growth could be significantly abolished. Our further studies showed miR-301b targeted RNF38, and inhibited its expression in cervical carcinoma cells. Moreover, RNF38 was found downregulated in cervical carcinoma, and miR-301b expression in cervical tissues was found negatively correlated with RNF38 expression. In addition, overexpression of RNF38 significantly inhibited cervical carcinoma cell growth, but overexpression of miR-301b suppressed RNF38-induced cell growth inhibition in cervical carcinoma. Collectively, this study suggested miR-301b could be a novel target for cervical carcinoma treatment.