Basic Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Sep 15, 2023; 15(9): 1556-1566
Published online Sep 15, 2023. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v15.i9.1556
MicroRNA-363-3p inhibits colorectal cancer progression by targeting interferon-induced transmembrane protein 1
Yun Wang, Shao-Kai Bai, Tao Zhang, Cheng-Gong Liao
Yun Wang, Shao-Kai Bai, Tao Zhang, Cheng-Gong Liao, Department of Oncology, Tangdu Hospital, Air Force Medical University, Xi’an 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
Author contributions: Wang Y and Bai SK designed and performed the assay; Zhang T analyzed the data; Liao CG designed the study and prepared the manuscript.
Supported by the Social Talent Fund Supporting Scheme of Tangdu Hospital, No. 2021SHRC001.
Institutional review board statement: The study was approved by the Hospital Ethics Committee (202203-116).
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Cheng-Gong Liao, PhD, Chief Physician, Department of Oncology, Tangdu Hospital, Air Force Medical University, No. 569 Xinsi Road, Xi’an 710038, Shaanxi Province, China. liaochenggong@163.com
Received: May 5, 2023
Peer-review started: May 5, 2023
First decision: July 9, 2023
Revised: July 21, 2023
Accepted: August 18, 2023
Article in press: August 18, 2023
Published online: September 15, 2023
Processing time: 131 Days and 8.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

The molecular mechanisms of colorectal cancer development and progression are far from being elucidated.

AIM

To investigate the role of microRNA-363-3p (miR-363-3p) in the progression of colorectal cancer.

METHODS

Real-time polymerase chain reaction was performed to detect miRNA expression in human colorectal cancer tissues and paired normal colorectal tissues. PITA 6 was utilized to predict the targets of miR-363-3p. Dual-luciferase reporter system was used to validate the target of miR-363-3p. Plate colony formation assay and wound-healing assay were performed to evaluate cancer cells’ clonogenic survival ability and migration ability, respectively. Cell proliferation was examined by cell counting kit-8 assay. Immunohistochemical staining was used to determine the expression level of interferon-induced transmembrane protein 1 (IFITM1) in colorectal cancer tissues and adjacent tissues. The TCGA and GTEx databases were used to compare the expression levels of IFITM1 mRNA in colorectal cancer tissues and normal colorectal tissues and analyze the correlation between the expression levels of IFITM1 mRNA and overall survival and disease-free survival of patients. A colorectal cancer cell line with a deficiency of IFITM1 was constructed, and the regulation effect of IFITM1 on the clonogenic growth of colorectal cancer cells was clarified.

RESULTS

MiR-363-3p was decreased in colorectal cancer tissues compared to normal colorectal tissues. IFITM1 was characterized as a direct target of miR-363-3p. Overexpression of miR-363-3p led to decreased clonogenic survival, proliferation, and migration of colorectal cancer cells, which could be reversed by forced IFITM1 expression.

CONCLUSION

MiR-363-3p can constrain clonogenic survival, proliferation, and migration of colorectal cancer cells via targeting IFITM1.

Keywords: MicroRNA-363-3p; Proliferation; Clonogenic survival; Colorectal cancer; Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 1

Core Tip: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been implicated in almost all known cancer processes. Although many algorithms can predict target genes for miRNA, the exact regulatory relationships still need to be experimentally verified. In this study, we investigated the role of miR-363-3p in clonogenic survival, proliferation, and migration of colorectal cancer cells and interferon-induced transmembrane protein 1 (IFITM1) was identified as a direct target of miR-363-3p. These findings widen and deepen the understanding of the molecular function of miR-363-3p and IFITM1.