Effect of HOXB7 in promoting proliferation, invasion and migration of cervical cancer cells.

Cervical cancer (CC) represents the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer and main cause of cancer mortality among women globally. We aim to investigate the mechanism of HOXB7 in CC cell progression, providing novel therapeutic implications for CC. Levels of HOXB7, miR-552-3p and IFITM1 in CC cells and tissues were measured by RT-qPCR and WB. After transfection of HOXB7 siRNA into CC cells, cell proliferation, invasion and migration were detected by CCK-8 method and transwell. The bindings of HOXB7 to miR-552-3p promoter and miR-552-3p to IFITM1 were analyzed. Effect of miR-552-3p and IFITM1 on the biological function of CC cells was detected in combined experiments. Results showed that the expression of HOXB7 and miR-552-3p was increased and the expression of IFITM1 was decreased. Cell proliferation, invasion and migration were reduced upon knockdown of HOXB7. Mechanically, HOXB7 bound and upregulated miR-552-3p expression, promoted the targeted binding of miR-552-3p to IFITM1, and reduced IFITM1 expression. miR-552-3p overexpression or IFITM1 downregulation reduced the inhibitory action of HOXB7 silencing on the proliferation, invasion and migration of CC cells. In conclusion, HOXB7 promotes the progression of CC cells via the miR-552-3p/IFITM1 axis. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10616-026-00903-1.