Background: Even though the relevance of microRNA (miR)-302c has been studied, little is known about its involvement in colon cancer (CC).
Aims: Our aim here was to investigate the role of miR-302c in the cancer stem cells (CSCs) of CC.
Methods: Firstly, the CSCs were screened out from cultured SW1116 and SW480 cells by flow cytometry, and the differentially expressed miRNAs in cell were obtained by microarray analysis. The expression of miR-302c, collaborator of ARF (CARF), and Wnt/β-catenin-related genes in CSCs was determined by means of RT-qPCR and Western blot. A dual-luciferase reporter assay was conducted to authenticate the binding relationship between miR-302c and CARF. Proliferation, migration, invasion, sphere formation as well as apoptosis of CSCs were assessed by cell counting kit-8, Transwell assay, sphere formation assay as well as flow cytometric analysis, respectively. The roles of miR-302c and CARF in tumor growth were determined in vivo.
Results: The expression of miR-302c in CC cells was reduced versus that in normal cells. The overexpression of miR-302c weakened the stemness, proliferation, invasion, and migration abilities while induced apoptosis of CSCs in CC. Also, miR-302c reduced tumor size and weight in mice, accompanied with lowered CARF expression. The mechanistic analysis manifested that miR-302c bound to CARF and suppressed its expression and disrupted the Wnt/β-catenin signaling.
Conclusion: This study offers a novel characterization of miR-302c function in CSCs in CC, which may be beneficial to the development of capable therapeutic options for CC.
Keywords: CARF; Colon cancer; MicroRNA-302c; Stemness; The Wnt/β-catenin signaling.