miR-449a Is Related to Short-Term Recurrence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Inhibits Migration and Invasion by Targeting Notch1

Purpose: To explore the effect of miR-449a inhibits migration and invasion by targeting Notch1 and regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and further study on the molecular mechanism.

Patients and methods: The expression of miR-449a and Notch1 in HCC cells and tissues was detected by qRT-PCR. The HCC cell line HCCLM3 and SMMC-7721 were transfected with miR-449a. The invasion and migration of HCC cell lines were detected by transwell assay and wound healing assay. The Notch pathway and EMT related protein were detected with Western Blotting. The specific binding site of mir-449a on notch1 gene was detected by luciferase assay.

Results: We found the expression of miR-449a was related to short-term recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after hepatectomy and acted as independent risk factors of DFS and OS. The expression of miR-449a decreased in tumor tissues and HCC cell lines, but the expression of Notch1 increased. The overexpressed miR-449a promoted the invasiveness in vitro by regulating EMT via Notch pathway. Mechanically, miR-449a inhibited the translation of Notch1 protein by binding to 3' UTR of its mRNA directly.

Conclusion: miR-449a is short-term recurrence-related miRNA and inhibits the invasion and metastasis ability of HCC cells by regulating EMT via Notch pathway. miR-449a may be a new effective therapeutic target for HCC.