MicroRNA-197 induces epithelial-mesenchymal transition and invasion through the downregulation of HIPK2 in lung adenocarcinoma.

The major cause of cancer-related deaths in patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LAD) is due to distant metastasis. Many reports have indicated that miRNA plays a key role in tumour metastasis. The expression of miR-197 is correlated with LADprogression, however, the mechanism of miR-197 is still unknown in the processing of LAD. A Boyden chamber migration/invasion assay was used for the metastatic function study in vitro. Real-time PCR andWestern blot assays were employed to analyse the EMT hallmark changes in both the mRNA and protein levels. 3'-UTR reporter luciferase assay was used to show that HIPK2 is a directtarget of miR-197. miR-197 enhances LAD cell migration and invasion miR-197. The downregulation of miR-197 suppresses the EMT and migration ability. HIPK2 is a direct functional target of miR-197 in LAD metastasis. In summary, miR-197 controls EMT and metastasis by directly silencing HIPK2. The findings suggest that interfering with the miR-197-dependent regulation of HIPK2 could be a useful approach for the treatment of patients with late stage metastatic LAD.