Radiation-induced microRNA-622 causes radioresistance in colorectal cancer cells by down-regulating Rb

The standard treatment for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer is preoperative 5-fluorouracil-based chemoradiotherapy followed by total mesorectal excision. However, tumor response to standard dose radiation varies. In this study, we found that miR-622 was increased significantly in ionizing radiation-treated colorectal cancer (CRC) cells compared to the cells cultured with irradiated medium, and persisted stably in surviving cells treated with continuous low-dose radiation. Overexpression of miR-622 induced the radioresistance in vitro. In addition, miR-622 inhibited Rb expression by directly targeting RB1-3'UTR. Overexpression of Rb reversed miR-622-induced radioresistance in vitro. In response to ionizing radiation, the Rb-E2F1-P/CAF complex activated proapoptotic genes. Importantly, miR-622 was highly expressed in tumors of rectal cancer patients with non-regression after standard dose radiotherapy. In conclusion, miR-622 overexpressing cells are induced or selected by radiotherapy, causing in turn radioresistance and poor response to further therapy. MiR-622 is a potential biomarker of responders for radiotherapy and a potential therapeutic target.