microRNA-138 suppressed proliferation and invasion of gastric cancer via RhoC

Gastric cancer (GC) is the fourth most predominant malignancy worldwide and remains the second most common cause of cancer-related death globally. Recent studies indicated that miRNAs have been involved in the tumorigenesis pathways in GC. In this study, we investigated the effect and molecular mechanism of miR-138 in human GC. The effects of miR-138 on the GC cell growth and invasion were first studied. Then the correlation of miR138 with RhoC was confirmed by dual luciferase reporter assay. We found that the overexpression of miR-138 resulted in inhibition of GC growth and reversion of invasion. RhoC was identified as the target of miR-138. Altogether, we conclude that miR-138 can modulate gastric cancer cell growth and invasion by suppressing the expression of RhoC and the activation of PI3K/Akt pathway. These data represent a crucial step towards the understanding of the novel roles and molecular mechanism of miR-138, RhoC in GC progression. Therefore, miR-138 may serve as a useful therapeutic agent for miRNA-based GC therapy.