MiR-152Controls Migration And Invasive Potential By Targeting TGFα In Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of short non-coding RNAs thatfunction in diverse biological processes. Aberrant miR-152expression has beenfrequently reported in various malignant tumors. However, the mechanism ofmiR-152in prostate cancer (PCa) remains unclear. This study aims to determine thefunction of miR-152in PCa cells and identify the novel molecular targets regulatedby miR-152.Methods: The expression levels of transforming growth factor-alpha (TGFα) weredetermined in three samples of PCa and adjacent non-tumorous tissues by Westernblot analysis. miR-152levels in48primary PCa and15nonmalignant tissue sampleswere measured by qRT-PCR. The effects of forced miR-152expression or TGFαknockdown on PCa cells were evaluated by cell migration and invasion assays, aswell as Western blot analysis. Dual-luciferase reporter assay was used to identifybinding sites between miR-152and TGFα3′-UTR.Results: TGFα was upregulated in PCa tissue samples compared with that in adjacentnormal ones. miR-152expression was significantly decreased in primary PCasamples compared with that in nonmalignant samples. Patients with Gleason scores>7exhibited lower miR-152levels than those with lower scores. Moreover, lowmiR-152expression is correlated with advanced pathological T-stages. ForcedmiR-152expression or TGFα knockdown significantly reduced the migratory and invasive capabilities of PCa cells in vitro. TGFα is a direct target gene of miR-152.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that miR-152can act as a tumor suppressor thattargets TGFα. miR-152is a promising molecular target that inhibits PCa cellmigration and invasion.