MicroRNA-210 targets FBXO31 to inhibit tumor progression and regulates the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and EMT in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Evidence from previous studies showed that the dysregulation of microRNA (miR) is frequently associated with tumor progression. The aberrant miR-210 expression has been identified in a variety of tumors. However, its biological roles in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) still need further elucidation. Thus, in the current study we explore the roles of miR-210 in ESCC progression. The findings of our study reveal that miR-210 is down-regulated in ESCC, which indicates poor prognosis and aggressive tumor progression. Moreover, miR-210 restoration was found to enhance ESCC viability, invasion, and migration abilities. F-Box only protein 31 (FBXO31) was confirmed to be one of the targets of miR-210 in ESCC cells. Results also revealed that miR-210 played crucial roles in regulating ESCC cell epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and Wnt/β-catenin signaling. In conclusion, data show that miR-210 serves as an anti-ESCC miR via down-regulation of FBXO31 and regulation of EMT and Wnt signaling, suggesting that the miR-210/FBXO31 axis may function as promising therapeutic targets and effective prognostic markers for ESCC patients.