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miR‐194 is a marker of hepatic epithelial cells and suppresses metastasis of liver cancer cells in mice
Author(s) -
Meng Zhipeng,
Fu Xianghui,
Chen Xiaosong,
Zeng Samuel,
Tian Yan,
Jove Richard,
Xu Rongzhen,
Huang Wendong
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
hepatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.488
H-Index - 361
eISSN - 1527-3350
pISSN - 0270-9139
DOI - 10.1002/hep.23915
Subject(s) - mesenchymal stem cell , metastasis , microrna , cancer research , epithelial–mesenchymal transition , cancer cell , biology , hepatic stellate cell , cancer , liver cancer , pathology , medicine , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , endocrinology , hepatocellular carcinoma , biochemistry , genetics
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression by interacting with the 3′ untranslated region (3′‐UTR) of multiple mRNAs. Recent studies have linked miRNAs to the development of cancer metastasis. In this study, we show that miR‐194 is specifically expressed in the human gastrointestinal tract and kidney. Moreover, miR‐194 is highly expressed in hepatic epithelial cells, but not in Kupffer cells or hepatic stellate cells, two types of mesenchymal cells in the liver. miR‐194 expression was decreased in hepatocytes cultured in vitro , which had undergone a dedifferentiation process. Furthermore, expression of miR‐194 was low in liver mesenchymal‐like cancer cell lines. The overexpression of miR‐194 in liver mesenchymal‐like cancer cells reduced the expression of the mesenchymal cell marker N‐cadherin and suppressed invasion and migration of the mesenchymal‐like cancer cells both in vitro and in vivo . We further demonstrated that miR‐194 targeted the 3′‐UTRs of several genes that were involved in epithelial‐mesenchymal transition and cancer metastasis. Conclusion: These results support a role of miR‐194, which is specifically expressed in liver parenchymal cells, in preventing liver cancer cell metastasis. (H EPATOLOGY 2010;.)