miR-454 is down-regulated in osteosarcomas and suppresses cell proliferation and invasion by directly targeting c-Met

Reduced-expression of miR-454 in osteosarcoma cells promoted tumour growth by targeting c-Met, thus miR-454 may be a potential therapy target for this tumour.

qRT-PCR was performed to detect expression of miR-454 in osteosarcoma cell lines and tissues. To understand its role in osteosarcoma, we reintroduced expression of miR-454 in the MG-63 cell line by transfection with miR-454 mimics or inhibitors. CCK-8 assay and an invasion assay were used to detect the functional role of miR-454. Luciferase assay and western blot analysis were performed to detect the target gene of miR-454.

miR-454 was found to be down-regulated in osteosarcoma tissues and cell lines. Its over-expression inhibited tumour growth and invasion and its down-regulation promoted cell proliferation and invasion. Subsequent investigation revealed that c-Met was a direct and functional target of miR-454 in osteosarcoma. Overexpression of miR-454 impaired c-Met-induced cell proliferation and invasion. Finally, miR-454 was found to be inversely correlated to c-Met expression in human osteosarcoma tissues. Conclusions: Reduced-expression of miR-454 in osteosarcoma cells promoted tumour growth by targeting c-Met, thus miR-454 may be a potential therapy target for this tumour.