Abstract
Purpose: :
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are 20-24 nucleotide non-coding RNAs which are expressed endogenously and repress protein translation through binding to target mRNAs. Evidence indicates that miRNAs have a central role in tumorigenesis. The function of miR-199a* in uveal melanoma, however, remains unknown. In this study, we investigated the function of MicroRNA-199a* (miR-199a*) in uveal melanoma cells.
Methods: :
Realtime PCR was performed to detect the expression of miR-199a* in uveal melanoma cells. miR-199a* was transfected into uveal melanoma cells by liperfectamine 2000. Cell proliferation was measured by MTS assay. Cell cycle and apoptosis was examined by flow cytometry and Hoechst staining, respectively. The target of miR-199a* was predicted by bioinformatics and confirmed by luciferase assay. Western blot analysis was carried out to detect the expression of c-Met in uveal melanoma cells.
Results: :
miR-199a* was expressed in normal melanocytes but downregulated in uveal melanoma cells. Transfection of miR-199a* into uveal melanoma cells significantly reduced cell proliferation, induced cell cycle G1-arrest and apoptosis. c-Met was demonstrated to be a target of miR-199a* by bioinformatics and luciferase assay. miR-199a* downregulated c-Met expression in uveal melanoma cells.
Conclusions: :
Our results demonstrated that miR-199a* may act as a tumor suppressor in uveal melanoma cell by targeting c-Met.
Keywords: melanoma • uvea • proliferation