Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 5, 2026

In Vitro Cultivation Techniques for Modeling Liver Organogenesis, Building Assembloids, and Designing Synthetic Tissues using Human Cell Lines
08:50

In Vitro Cultivation Techniques for Modeling Liver Organogenesis, Building Assembloids, and Designing Synthetic Tissues using Human Cell Lines

Published on: April 18, 2025

836

The let-7c/HoxB7 axis regulates the cell proliferation, migration and apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma

Lijun Cai1, Zhangliu Wang2, Huajun Zheng2

  • 1Department of Gastroenterology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University.

Anti-Cancer Drugs
|October 15, 2019
PubMed

Insights

The let-7c microRNA suppresses liver cancer by downregulating the oncogene HoxB7. This let-7c/HoxB7 interaction offers a potential new therapeutic strategy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treatment.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Gene Regulation

Background:

  • HOX genes are implicated in carcinogenesis, functioning as oncogenes or tumor suppressors.
  • Bioinformatics analysis suggested a potential regulatory relationship between HoxB7 and let-7c.
  • HoxB7's role in liver carcinogenesis was not fully elucidated.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the functional relationship between HoxB7 and let-7c in the context of liver carcinogenesis.
  • To determine the impact of the let-7c/HoxB7 axis on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of HoxB7 and let-7c expression in HCC tissues and cells.
  • Assessment of let-7c's effect on HCC cell proliferation, migration, and apoptosis.
  • Validation of HoxB7 as a direct target of let-7c.
  • In vivo studies using a subcutaneous HCC tumor model.

Main Results:

  • HoxB7 was upregulated and inversely correlated with survival in HCC patients.
  • Let-7c was downregulated and positively correlated with survival in HCC patients.
  • Let-7c overexpression inhibited HCC cell proliferation and migration, while promoting apoptosis.
  • Let-7c directly targets and downregulates HoxB7, reversing HoxB7's oncogenic effects.
  • Let-7c suppressed tumor growth in vivo.

Conclusions:

  • The let-7c/HoxB7 axis plays a critical role in regulating HCC development.
  • Targeting the let-7c/HoxB7 pathway presents a promising therapeutic strategy for hepatocellular carcinoma.

More Related Videos

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay08:01

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay

Published on: October 27, 2014

113.4K
Author Spotlight: Investigating Liver Cancer Pathogenesis Using Patient-Derived Organoids07:25

Author Spotlight: Investigating Liver Cancer Pathogenesis Using Patient-Derived Organoids

Published on: August 18, 2023

2.4K

Related Concept Videos

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...
9.7K
Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply01:24

Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply

Rapidly dividing tumors, embryos, and wounded tissues require more oxygen than usual, lowering the oxygen concentration in the blood. At low oxygen or hypoxic conditions, an oxygen-sensitive transcription factor called the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 or HIF1 is activated. HIF1 is a dimeric protein of alpha (ɑ) and beta (β) subunits.  Under optimal oxygen conditions, HIF1β is present in the nucleus while HIF1ɑ remains in the cytosol. HIF1ɑ is hydroxylated by prolyl...
3.3K
Cadherins in Tissue Organization01:19

Cadherins in Tissue Organization

The cadherins are a superfamily of cell adhesion molecules comprising over 180 variants, with specific tissues expressing a particular combination of cadherin types. Cadherins generally exhibit homophilic binding; i.e., cadherins on one cell bind to cadherins of the same or closely related type on another cell. Thus, cells of the same type have a specific affinity to bind to each other and sort themselves into clusters to form tissues.
Cell Sorting During Development
Cell sorting plays an...
3.8K
Liver Regeneration01:24

Liver Regeneration

The liver is an important organ in vertebrates that plays an essential role in metabolism. It is also responsible for storing and redistributing nutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, and vitamins in the body. Additionally, the liver releases bile salts which are critical for digesting food and eliminating toxic metabolites from the body.
Cells of Liver
The liver comprises four major types of cells— hepatocytes, stellate, Kupffer, and sinusoidal endothelial cells. The hepatocytes are...
4.2K
Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal01:12

Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal

Notch signaling was first discovered in Drosophila melanogaster, where it is involved in cell lineage differentiation. Notch signaling regulates the maintenance and differentiation of intestinal stem cells or ISCs by controlling the expression of atonal homolog 1 or Atoh1. Atoh1 directs cells to differentiate into secretory cells.
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
2.4K
MicroRNAs01:22

MicroRNAs

MicroRNA (miRNA) are short, regulatory RNA transcribed from introns (non-coding regions of a gene) or intergenic regions (stretches of DNA present between genes). Several processing steps are required to form biologically active, mature miRNA. The initial transcript, called primary miRNA (pri-mRNA), base-pairs with itself, forming a stem-loop structure. Within the nucleus, an endonuclease enzyme, called Drosha, shortens the stem-loop structure into hairpin-shaped pre-miRNA. After the pre-miRNA...
3.7K