Abstract
BACKGROUND: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been considered to participate in many tumorigenesis, including gastric cancer (GC). Abnormal expression of miR-601 has been reported in GC, but its role is not clear. The goal of this study is to explore the expression patterns, clinical value and functional role of miR-601 in GC. METHODS: Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was conducted to evaluate the expression level of miR-601. The association between miR-601 expression and overall survival was estimated by the Kaplan-Meier survival method. The significance of different variables with respect to survival was analyzed by using the Cox regression assay. Cell experiments were applied to investigate the functional role of miR-601 in GC. RESULTS: We found that miR-601 was significantly up-regulated in GC tissues and cells compared with the controls (all P < 0.01). The levels of miR-601 expression were significantly associated with TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, lymphatic invasion, and distant metastasis (all P < 0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that patients in the high miR-601 expression group had poor overall survival (log-rank P = 0.001). Moreover, we confirmed that miR-601, TNM stage, and distant metastasis were independent prognostic factors for GC patients. Overexpression of miR-601 in AGS and SGC-7901 cells by miR-601 mimic transfection significantly promoted the cell proliferation, migration, and invasion (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The expression level of miR-601 is dramatically up-regulated in GC. The overexpression of miR-601 promotes the tumor progression of GC, and may be a novel prognostic factor for poor survival in GC patients.