MicroRNA-16-5p overexpression suppresses proliferation and invasion as well as triggers apoptosis by targeting VEGFA expression in breast carcinoma

// Yunhui Qu 1, 2, * , Hongtao Liu 3, * , Xinquan Lv 1 , Yuqiong Liu 1 , Xiaojuan Wang 1 , Min Zhang 1 , Xiaqing Zhang 3 , Yuenan Li 3 , Qianqian Lou 3 , Shenglei Li 1 and Huixiang Li 1 1 Department of Pathology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Zhengzhou University and The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, P.R. China 2 Clinical Laboratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, P.R. China 3 Laboratory for Cell Biology, College of Life Sciences of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, P.R. China * These authors contributed equally to this work Correspondence to: Huixiang Li, email: lhx20170220@126.com Keywords: microRNA-16-5p, breast carcinoma, HIF-α, VEGFA, tumor growth Received: March 03, 2017      Accepted: August 07, 2017      Published: August 23, 2017 ABSTRACT MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small noncoding RNA molecules, can manipulate the expressions of endogenous tumor-related genes, and are implicated in the development and progression of a wide type of tumors. In this study, the investigation from real-time quantitative PCR revealed that miRNA-16-5p was downregulated in breast carcinoma tissues and cells, coupled with the elevations of HIF-α and VEGFA protein expressions, compared with normal tissues. Lentiviral armed with miR-16-5p markedly increased the miR-16-5p levels in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, compared to blank and NC groups, and miR-16-5p overexpression significantly inhibited the proliferation and colony formation in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. Besides, miR-16-5p upregulation markedly induced apoptosis and reduced invasion ability in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. Notably, VEGFA was direct target of miR-16-5p. Stepwise investigation from in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that miR-16-5p overexpression suppressed tumor growth and reduced HIF-α and VEGFA expressions in breast carcinoma cells and nude mice tumor tissues. These findings provide novel insights into molecular mechanism involved in the roles of miR-16-5p in tumor development and progression of breast carcinoma, and thus manipulation of miR-16-5p may be a novel potential therapeutic target for future therapies of the patients with breast carcinoma.