MicroRNA-193b-3p Promotes the Development of Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma by Targeting CCND1 and IGF1R

The abnormal expression of miR-193a-3p was associated mostly with the development and progress of the tumors. In the present study, the expression levels of miR-193b-3p and its associated mRNAs were measured by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and the methylation levels of its promoter were detected via the methylation-specific PCR in serum and tissues of patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). The results demonstrated that the expression level of miR-193b-3p were significantly decreased in preoperative serum and cancer tissues in patients with ESCC (p<0.01). The expression level of miR-193b-3p significantly was upregulated in serum after surgical removal of the cancerous tissue in ESCC patients (p<0.01). The target gene CCND1 of miR193a-3p showed the high expression in the tumor tissues, and its up- and down-stream gene Rb and p16 showed the low expression; and the target gene IGF1R and its up- and down-stream gene IGF1 and PI3K showed the high expression. The methylation level of miR-193a-3p in the promoter region was higher significantly in the tumor tissues than that in the adjacent non-cancerous tissues (p<0.01). This showed that the high methylation of genetic promoter region of miR-193b-3p might inhibit the expression of miR-193b-3p and further the regulation of CCND1 and IGF1R, as well as the relevant signaling pathways, facilitating the development and progress of ESCC.