miR-199a-5p regulates the expression of metastasis-associated genes in B16F10 melanoma cells

MicroRNAs are regulatory factors that play important roles in tumor development, invasion and metastasis. Previously, we showed that miR-199a is abnormally expressed in clinical melanoma specimens and expression was closely associated with clinical features of metastasis. However, the exact molecular mechanisms by which miR-199a-5p influences melanoma invasion and metastasis remains unclear. In this study, we investigated gene expression changes of metastasis-associated genes in B16F10 melanoma cells following targeted silencing or overexpression of miR-199a-5p, using mouse tumor metastasis PCR arrays. Comparison of gene expression changes in miR-199a-5p-silenced versus overexpressing cells identified a set of upregulated genes (> 2-fold) including Cd44, Cdh1, Cxcr4, Etv4, Fxyd5, Rpsa, Mmp3, Myc, Rb1, Tcf20, Hprt1, Actb1 and downregulated genes (> 2-fold) including Ctsk, Itga7 and Tnfsf10. Regulation of a subset of these genes (Myc, Tnfsf10 and Cd44) following miR-199a-5p silencing or overexpression was validated by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blot. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that miR-199a-5p regulates melanoma metastasis-related genes, and may provide a basis for the development of novel, molecularly targeted drugs.