Hsa-miR-337 inhibits non-small cell lung cancer cell invasion and migration by targeting TCF7
Authors: H-Y Zhang
J Zhang
C-X Zhang
W-H Gong
Y Li
Journal: European review for medical and pharmacological sciences (2019)
Discipline: PHARMACOLOGY & TOXICOLOGY
Keywords: miRNAs; tumorigenesis; non-small cell lung cancer; hsa-miR-337; progression
Affiliations: Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China. .

Abstract:  Objective: Recent studies have revealed that microRNAs (miRNAs) play a crucial role in the progression of tumorigenesis. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify the exact role of hsa-miR-337 in the progression of NSCLC and to investigate the possible underlying mechanism. Patients and methods: Hsa-miR-337 expression in NSCLC cells and 60 paired tissue samples were detected by Real Time-quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR). Moreover, the functions of hsa-miR-337 in vitro were identified by transwell assay and wound healing assay, respectively. Furthermore, the underlying mechanism was explored by RT-qPCR, Western blot assay, and luciferase assay. Results: The expression level of hsa-miR-337 in NSCLC tissues was remarkably down-regulated when compared with that of adjacent normal samples. Moreover, the invasion and migration of NSCLC cells were significantly inhibited after overexpression of hsa-miR-337 in vitro. Moreover, after overexpression of hsa-miR-337 in vitro, the mRNA and protein levels of TCF7 were significantly down-regulated. Besides, the expression of TCF7 in NSCLC tissues was negatively correlated with the expression of hsa-miR-337. Conclusions: The above results suggested that hsa-miR-337 could repress the migration and invasion of NSCLC cells through directly targeting TCF7. Furthermore, hsa-miR-337 might offer a new therapeutic intervention for NSCLC patients. 

Retracted: Yes

PubPeer comments:
 This paper is one of a set of 121 papers that all contain images from the same library of about 100 photos and plots. This is unexpected, because each paper has different authors and different affiliations, with little to no overlap, and describes different cancer types and molecules. It would be very hard to explain how authors from different labs would all obtain the same photo. Therefore, the papers might have all be derived from the same source, such as a paper mill that sells ready-to-be-published papers. This  Stock Photo paper set has been described in more detail on my blog post, https: scienceintegritydigest.com 2020 07 05 the-stock-photo-paper-mill and in a Wall Street Journal article by Eva Xiao (currently behind a paywall): https: www.wsj.com articles chinese-research-papers-raise-doubts-fueling-global-questions-about-scientific-integrity-11593939600 The vast majority (113 121) of the papers were published in the same journal, European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences (ERMPS). A link to the full set of papers can be found here: https: docs.google.com spreadsheets d 172RWS18w1lTNJ9Nnj80fuXXTqTm4fGkoK0sdYyvKE3g edit?usp=sharing All papers have been reported to the journal editors on July 2, 2020. , 
 Some time in the last week or so, the journal wished the paper into the cornfield: https: www.europeanreview.org article 22232 Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, u201cHsa-miR-337 inhibits non-small cell lung cancer cell invasion and migration by targeting TCF7, by J. Zhang, W.-H. Gong, Y. Li, H.-Y. Zhang, C.-X. Zhang, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2019; 23 (15): 6548-6553u2013DOI: 10.26355 eurrev_201908_18540u2013PMID: 31378895u201d has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. ,