MiR-223 promotes oral squamous cell carcinoma proliferation and migration by regulating FBXW7

Abnormally expressed microRNAs (miRNAs) contribute widely to human cancer, including oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), by regulating their downstream targets. MiR-223 has been proved to be up-regulated in both gastric cancer and ovarian cancer. However, the effect of miR-223 on OSCC is still unclear. Here, we showed that miR-223 was over-expressed in OSCC tissues using qRT-PCR. Next, we investigated the biological mechanism of miR-223 in OSCC. The results demonstrated that miR-223 facilitated the cell proliferation and migration of OSCC using MTT assay and Transwell assay. Furthermore, we stated that the FBXW7 expression was decreased in OSCC and re-expression of FBXW7 inhibited the proliferation and migration of OSCC. In addition, FBXW7 mimic inversed the promotion effect of miR-223 in regulating of OSCC cells. In short, miR-223 promoted OSCC cell proliferation and migration by downregulating FBXW7, which provided a novel therapeutic strategy for OSCC.