Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 12, 2026

Three-dimensional Alginate-bead Culture of Human Pituitary Adenoma Cells
08:31

Three-dimensional Alginate-bead Culture of Human Pituitary Adenoma Cells

Published on: February 18, 2016

10.5K

MiR-16 inhibits pituitary adenoma cell proliferation via the suppression of ERK/MAPK signal pathway

D-W Wang1, Y-Q Wang, H-S Shu

  • 1Department of Neurosurgery, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, Anhui, People's Republic of China. liangtiji889@163.com.

European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences
|March 23, 2018
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

MicroRNA-16 (miR-16) suppresses pituitary tumor growth by inhibiting the MEK1-ERK/MAPK pathway. Restoring miR-16 levels reduces tumor cell proliferation and induces apoptosis, offering a potential therapeutic target.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Oncology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is crucial for cell proliferation, cell cycle regulation, and apoptosis.
  • MicroRNA-16 (miR-16) is frequently downregulated in pituitary tumors, suggesting a potential role in tumorigenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of miR-16 in pituitary tumor progression.
  • To elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms by which miR-16 affects pituitary tumor cell proliferation, cell cycle, and apoptosis.

Main Methods:

  • Bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assays were used to confirm the direct targeting of MEK1 by miR-16.
  • Expression levels of miR-16, MEK1, p-ERK1/2, Survivin, and Cyclin D1 were compared between normal pituitary cells and HP75 pituitary tumor cells.
  • Flow cytometry was employed to assess cell proliferation, cell cycle distribution, and apoptosis in cultured HP75 cells following transfection with miR-16 mimics or MEK1-specific small interfering RNA (si-MEK1).

Main Results:

  • Bioinformatics and luciferase assays confirmed that miR-16 directly targets MEK1.
  • Pituitary adenoma tissues and HP75 cells exhibited significantly lower miR-16 expression and higher MEK1 levels compared to normal tissues and cells.
  • Overexpression of miR-16 or inhibition of MEK1 in HP75 cells led to decreased MEK1, p-ERK1/2, Survivin, and Cyclin D1 expression, suppressed cell proliferation, induced apoptosis, and caused cell cycle arrest.

Conclusions:

  • MiR-16 acts as a tumor suppressor in pituitary tumors by inhibiting the MEK1-ERK/MAPK signaling pathway.
  • Targeting miR-16 or its downstream effectors presents a potential therapeutic strategy for pituitary tumors.

More Related Videos

Endoscopic Endonasal Trans-sphenoidal Approach: Minimally Invasive Surgery for Pituitary Adenomas07:43

Endoscopic Endonasal Trans-sphenoidal Approach: Minimally Invasive Surgery for Pituitary Adenomas

Published on: January 17, 2018

19.8K
Imaging Spatial Reorganization of a MAPK Signaling Pathway Using the Tobacco Transient Expression System08:54

Imaging Spatial Reorganization of a MAPK Signaling Pathway Using the Tobacco Transient Expression System

Published on: March 20, 2016

10.3K

Related Concept Videos

MAPK Signaling Cascades01:07

MAPK Signaling Cascades

Mitogen-activated protein kinase, or MAPK pathway, activates three sequential kinases to regulate cellular responses such as proliferation, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis. The canonical MAPK pathway starts with a mitogen or growth factor binding to an RTK. The activated RTKs stimulate Ras, which recruits Raf or MAP3 Kinase (MAPKKK), the first kinase of the MAPK signaling cascade. Raf further phosphorylates and activates MEK or MAP2 Kinases (MAPKK), which in turn phosphorylates MAP...
8.6K
Hypothalamic-Pituitary Axis01:37

Hypothalamic-Pituitary Axis

The response to stress—be it physical or psychological, acute or chronic—involves activation of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis. The HPA axis is part of the neuroendocrine system because it involves both neuronal and hormonal communication. Its function is to regulate homeostatic systems—metabolic, cardiovascular, and immune—providing the necessary means to respond to a stressor.
66.5K
Notch Signaling Pathway03:14

Notch Signaling Pathway

The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not...
6.6K
Hedgehog Signaling Pathway02:33

Hedgehog Signaling Pathway

The Hedgehog gene (Hh) was first discovered due to its control of the growth of disorganized, hair-like bristles phenotype in Drosophila, much like hedgehog spines. Hh plays a crucial role in the development of organs and the maintenance of homeostasis in both invertebrates and vertebrates. However, while Drosophila has only one Hh protein, mammals have multiple functional Hedgehog proteins - Sonic (Shh), Desert (Dhh), and Indian Hedgehog (Ihh). All of these homologous proteins have adapted to...
10.1K
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
7.4K
Non-Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathways01:41

Non-Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathways

Wnt is a zygotic effect gene that is expressed during very early embryonic development. It regulates various processes in animals starting from early development through the adult stage, such as organogenesis in the embryo and maintenance of neuronal and blood stem cells. Wnt proteins can induce a wide variety of intracellular pathways depending upon the specific abilities of different Wnt ligands to form a complex with shared and cognate receptors in the presence of different co-receptors. The...
8.5K