MicroRNA-200a inhibits cell growth and metastasis by targeting Foxa2 in hepatocellular carcinoma

Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of endogenous, small non-coding RNAs which function as essential posttranscriptional modulators of gene expression tightly involved in a wide range of diseases, including the hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Here, the present study was designed to investigate the expression levels and cellular roles of miR-200a in HCC. Methods: Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression levels of miR-200a in serums and cell lines. Bioinformation analysis, the luciferase reporter assay, qRT-PCR and western blotting were employed to validate Foxa2 as a direct target gene of miR-200a. Cell proliferation, migration and invasion were assessed to identify whether miR-200a could regulate the biological behaviors of HCC cells by targeting Foxa2. Results: In this study, a low level of miR-200a was observed in patients' serums and HCC cell lines. Overexpression of miR-200a in HCC cell lines reduced cell proliferation, migration and invasion. In addition, transcription factor forkhead box A2 (Foxa2) was identified as a novel target of miR-200a and downregulated at mRNA and protein levels in miR-200a overexpressed cells. Meanwhile, restoration of Foxa2 significantly reversed the tumor suppressive effects of miR-200a. Conclusions: These findings indicate that miR-200a regulates the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells by targeting Foxa2, suggesting that miR-200a may function as a potential therapeutic molecular for the diagnosis and treatment of the liver cancer.