MicroRNA-19a and microRNA-19b promote the malignancy of clear cell renal cell carcinoma through targeting the tumor suppressor RhoB

PLoS One. 2018 Feb 23;13(2):e0192790. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0192790. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most common subtype of renal cell carcinoma, which shows high aggressiveness and lacks biomarkers. RhoB acts as a tumor suppressor that inhibits the progression of ccRCC. In the present study, we examined the effects of oncogenic microRNAs, miR-19a and miR-19b, on RhoB expression in ccRCC cells. The results showed that both miR-19a and miR-19b could directly target the 3'untranslated region (3'UTR) of RhoB, resulting in the reduced expression of RhoB. With RT-PCR analysis, we detected the increased expression of miR-19a and miR-19b in ccRCC tissues compared to adjacent non-tumor renal tissues. These data also demonstrated an exclusive negative correlation between miR-19a/19b and RhoB expression in ccRCC specimens and cell lines. In addition, the knockdown of RhoB or overexpression of miR-19a and miR-19b in ccRCC cells could promote cell proliferation, migration and invasion. These data demonstrate the direct roles of miR-19a and miR-19b on the repression of RhoB and its consequences on tumorigenesis, cancer cell proliferation and invasiveness. These results suggest the potential clinical impact of miR-19a and miR-19b as molecular targets for ccRCC.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • 3' Untranslated Regions
  • Apoptosis / genetics
  • Carcinoma, Renal Cell / genetics
  • Carcinoma, Renal Cell / pathology*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation
  • Gene Knockdown Techniques
  • Humans
  • Kidney Neoplasms / genetics
  • Kidney Neoplasms / pathology*
  • MicroRNAs / genetics*
  • Middle Aged
  • Neoplasm Invasiveness
  • Neoplasm Metastasis
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • rhoB GTP-Binding Protein / genetics*
  • rhoB GTP-Binding Protein / metabolism

Substances

  • 3' Untranslated Regions
  • MIRN19 microRNA, human
  • MicroRNAs
  • rhoB GTP-Binding Protein

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (2014AA020607).