MicroRNA-492 overexpression exerts suppressive effects on the progression of osteosarcoma by targeting PAK7

MicroRNAs (miRNAs or miRs), which are a class of non-coding RNAs, have emerged as effective modulators of various aspects of biological processes. Accumulating evidence has established significant associations between the dysregulation of miRs and tumorigenesis in various types of cancer. However, the role of miR‑492, particularly in osteosarcoma (OS) remains elusive. In present study, we demonstrated that miR‑492 functions as putative tumor suppressor miR in OS. The level of miR‑492 was frequently downregulated in both OS tissues and cell lines. Moreover, the ectopic overexpression of miR‑492 effectively inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of OS cell lines. Furthermore, transfection with a miR‑492 overexpression vector also strongly attenuated the growth of xenograft tumors in vivo. p21-activated kinase (PAK7) was identified as the putative target of miR‑492 in OS, and we further found a significantly inverse correlation between PAK7 and miR‑492 in OS specimens. Taken together, our study has unraveled a novel role for miR‑492 in OS and may help in establishing the rationale for more effective treatment strategies for OS via miR regulation.