MiR-24 enhances radiosensitivity in nasopharyngeal carcinoma by targeting SP1

Radioresistance remains a major problem in the treatment of patients suffering from nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A better understanding of the mechanisms of radioresistance may generate new strategies to improve NPC patients' responses to therapy. This study was designed to investigate the effect of microRNA on the radiosensitivity of NPC cells. A microRNA microarray indicated that miR-24 was downregulated in NPC cell lines and tissues. Furthermore, cell proliferation was suppressed and radiosensitivity increased when miR-24 was ectopically expressed in NPC cells. Specificity protein 1 (SP1) was additionally verified as a direct functional target of miR-24, which was found to be involved in cell viability as well as the radiosensitivity of NPC cells. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that the miR-24/SP1 pathway contributed to the reduction in radioresistance in human NPC and that it may thus represent a therapeutic target.