miR-152-5p inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of liver cancer cells by up-regulating FOXO expression

Currently, a lot of microRNAs (miRNAs) have been confirmed to be closely related with liver cancer occurrence and development. This study was aimed to explore the role of miR-152-5p in liver cancer. HepG2 and MHCC97 cells were transfected with miR-152-5p mimic, inhibitor or corresponding scramble controls, respectively. The expression level of miR-152-5p in transfected cells was detected by qPCR. Cell viability, apoptosis, migration and invasion of miR-transfected cells were measured to determine the effect of miR-152-5p on the activity of hepatoma cells. The protein expressions of fork head transcription factor O (FOXO) and apoptosis related factors in miR-transfected cells were detected by western blot assay. In addition, western blot was used to detect the relationship of FOXO expression and mainly factors of the JNK signaling pathway after concurrent treatment with miR-152-5p mimic and JNK inhibitor. The results showed that the miR-152-5p was effectively overexpressed or repressed in both HepG2 and MHCC97 cells. Overexpression of miR-152-5p inhibited cell viability, promoted apoptosis, and reduced migration and invasion. In these cells, miR-152-5p overexpression activated the expression of apoptosis-related factors and upregulated the expression of FOXO by activating the phosphorylation of mainly factors in the JNK pathway. miR-152-5p might be a potential anti-tumor factor for liver cancer treatment.