MicroRNA-513a-3p regulates colorectal cancer cell metabolism via targeting hexokinase 2.

Disruption of cell metabolism is a hallmark of cancer cells. Accumulating evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) are involved in almost all physiological and pathological processes. The aberrant expression of miRNAs induces metabolic reprogramming in cancer cells and thus, promotes proliferation. In the current study, miR-513a-3p was identified as a significantly downregulated miRNA in colorectal cancer cells and tumors. Overexpression of miR-513a-3p in colorectal cancer cells inhibited proliferation and glycolysis. A well-documented metabolic regulator, hexokinase 2 (HK2), was predicted and validated HK2to be a target gene of miR-513a-3p in colorectal cancer cells. In addition, overexpression of HK2 reversed the miR-513a-3p mimic-induced inhibition of proliferation. The association between HK2 and miR-513a-3p was further observed in tumors collected from patients with colorectal cancer. The findings suggest that miR-513a-5p may inhibit glycolysis in colorectal cancer cells via repressing HK2 expression, indicating that miR-513a-5p may be a tumor suppressor in colorectal cancer.