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Updated: Dec 14, 2025

An In Vitro Protocol for Evaluating MicroRNA Levels, Functions, and Associated Target Genes in Tumor Cells
Published on: May 21, 2019
Honokiol Suppressed Pancreatic Cancer Progression via miR-101/Mcl-1 Axis
Yishuo Wang1,2, Zhongyong Liu1,2, Qinrong Liu1,2
1College of Pharmacy, Henan University of Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, People's Republic of China.
Background:
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive malignancies. The present study aimed to examine the anti-tumor effects of honokiol in pancreatic cancer and to explore the underlying molecular mechanisms.
Materials And Methods:
In vitro functional assays determined pancreatic cancer cell proliferation, apoptosis and invasion. Xenograft nude mice model determined the in vivo anti-cancer effects of honokiol. Luciferase reporter assay determined the interaction between miR101 and myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1).
Results:
Honokiol concentration-dependently suppressed pancreatic cancer cell viability. In addition, honokiol increased the caspase-3 activity and cell apoptotic rates, induced cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase, and inhibited cell invasion in pancreatic cancer. Interestingly, honokiol treatment induced up-regulation of miR-101 in pancreatic cancer cells. Knockdown of miR-101 attenuated the honokiol-induced cell apoptosis and inhibition in cell invasion of pancreatic cancer cells. On the other hand, miR-101 overexpression induced cell apoptosis and inhibited cell viability and invasion in pancreatic cancer. Further mechanistic study verified that Mcl-1 was negatively regulated by miR-101, and Mcl-1 overexpression counteracted the tumor-suppressive effects of honokiol on the pancreatic cancer cells. In vivo studies showed that honokiol dose-dependently suppressed tumor growth of pancreatic cancer in the nude mice and up-regulated miR-101 expression but down-regulated Mcl-1 expression in tumor tissues.
Conclusion:
Our data showed that honokiol suppressed pancreatic cancer progression via miR-101-Mcl-1 axis. Honokiol could be a promising candidate for cancer prevention and/or therapeutic treatment for pancreatic cancer.
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