Functional screening identifies miRNAs influencing apoptosis and proliferation in colorectal cancer
Authors: Juha Rantala
Anja Holm
Kristian Helin
Claus L Andersen
Torben F Ørntoft
Philippe Lamy
Kasper Thorsen
Eva M Riising
Anders Jakobsen
Mads H Rasmussen
Oliver M Sieber
Olli Kallioniemi
Jan Lubinski
Lise Lotte Christensen
Troels Schepeler
Frederik Dagnaes-Hansen
Marie S Ostenfeld
Torben F Hansen
Heidi Tobiasen
Bodil Øster
Søren Laurberg
Rikke Hagemann-Madsen
Peter Gibbs
Journal: PLoS ONE (2014)
Discipline: Multidisciplinary
Keywords: MicroRNAs; biological processes; human cancers; tumor suppressors; oncogenes
Affiliations: Colorectal Cancer Research Group, Department of Molecular Medicine (MOMA), Aarhus University Hospital, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark., Clinical Biochemistry, Glostrup Research Institute, Glostrup Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark; Molecular Sleep Laboratory, Department of Diagnostics, and Danish Center for Sleep Medicine, Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Glostrup Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark., Medical Biotechnology, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Turku, Finland., Bladder Cancer Research Group, Department of Molecular Medicine (MOMA), Aarhus University Hospital, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark., Department of Biomedicine, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark., Ludwig Colon Cancer Initiative Laboratory, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Melbourne, Australia; Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia., Ludwig Colon Cancer Initiative Laboratory, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Melbourne, Australia; Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia; Department of Medical Oncology, Royal Melbourne and Western Hospital, Melbourne, Australia., Department of Oncology, Vejle Hospital, University of Southern Denmark, Vejle, Denmark., Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC), University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark., Department of Pathology and Genetics, Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland., Department of Pathology, Aarhus University Hospital, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark., Department of Surgery, Aarhus University Hospital, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark.

Abstract:  MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a critical role in many biological processes and are aberrantly expressed in human cancers. Particular miRNAs function either as tumor suppressors or oncogenes and appear to have diagnostic and prognostic significance. Although numerous miRNAs are dys-regulated in colorectal cancer (CRC) only a small fraction has been characterized functionally. Using high-throughput functional screening and miRNA profiling of clinical samples the present study aims at identifying miRNAs important for the control of cellular growth and/or apoptosis in CRC. The high-throughput functional screening was carried out in six CRC cell lines transfected with a pre-miR library including 319 synthetic human pre-miRs. Phenotypic alterations were evaluated by immunostaining of cleaved cPARP (apoptosis) or MKI67 (proliferation). Additionally, TaqMan Human MicroRNA Array Set v2.0 was used to profile the expression of 667 miRNAs in 14 normal colon mucosa and 46 microsatellite stable stage II CRC patients. Among the miRNAs that induced growth arrest and apoptosis in the CRC cell lines, and at same time were dys-regulated in the clinical samples, miR-375 was selected for further analysis. Independent in vitro analysis of transient and stable transfected CRC cell lines confirmed that miR-375 reduces cell viability through the induction of apoptotic death. We identified YAP1 as a direct miR-375 target in CRC and show that HELLS and NOLC1 are down-stream targets. Knock-down of YAP1 mimicked the phenotype induced by miR-375 over-expression indicating that miR-375 most likely exerts its pro-apoptotic role through YAP1 and its anti-apoptotic down-stream targets BIRC5 and BCL2L1. Finally, in vivo analysis of mouse xenograft tumors showed that miR-375 expression significantly reduced tumor growth. We conclude that the high-throughput screening successfully identified miRNAs that induce apoptosis and/or inhibit proliferation in CRC cells. Finally, combining the functional screening with profiling of CRC tissue samples we identified clinically relevant miRNAs and miRNA targets in CRC. 

Retracted: No

PubPeer comments:
 Figure 5B, thereu2019s a splice in YAP1 blot but not in actin control. Could the authors please check? ![file] ,