miR-503 inhibits cell proliferation and invasion in glioma by targeting L1CAM.

Deregulated microRNAs and their roles in tumorigenesis have attracted much attention in recent years. Although miR-503 has been reported to be aberrant expression in several cancers, its role in glioma remains unknown. In this study, we focused on the expression and mechanisms of miR-503 in glioma development. We found that miR-503 was downregulated in glioma cell lines and tumor tissues, and the restoration of miR-503 reduced cell proliferation invasion. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis indicated that L1CAM was a putative target of miR-503. In a Luciferase reporter system, we confirmed that L1CAM was a direct target gene of miR-503. These findings indicate that miR-503 suppresses glioma cell growth by negatively regulating the expression of L1CAM. Collectively, our data identify the important roles of miR-503 in glioma pathogenesis, indicating its potential application in cancer therapy.