miR-27b-3p promotes thyroid cancer cell aggressiveness via ATF3 suppression

The global incidence of thyroid cancer is rising, yet its underlying molecular etiology remains elusive. This study aimed to investigate the roles of transcription factor ATF3 and miR-27b-3p in thyroid cancer. Bioinformatics analysis identified miR-27b-3p as the upstream regulatory miRNA of ATF3. In thyroid cancer, ATF3 was found to be downregulated, whereas miR-27b-3p was upregulated, and both were associated with aggressive tumor features. Their expression in clinical thyroid cancer samples was measured via qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC), which confirmed decreased ATF3 expression and increased miR-27b-3p levels. Higher miR-27b-3p expression was associated with C-TIRADS classification, TNM stage, and serum TSH levels. A dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed that miR-27b-3p directly targets ATF3, and inhibiting miR-27b-3p markedly increased ATF3 expression. Additionally, functional experiments demonstrated that overexpressing miR-27b-3p or knocking down ATF3 enhanced thyroid cancer cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. Conversely, inhibiting miR-27b-3p or overexpressing ATF3 suppressed these malignant phenotypes, while simultaneous silencing of miR-27b-3p and ATF3 partially rescued the inhibitory effects. These findings suggest that miR-27b-3p enhances thyroid cancer cell aggressiveness in part by inhibiting ATF3, providing insights that warrant further investigation.