Inhibition of Src by microRNA-23b increases the cisplatin sensitivity of chondrosarcoma cells.

Chondrosarcomas are malignant cartilage-forming tumors from low-grade to high-grade aggressive tumors characterized by metastasis. Cisplatin is an effective DNA-damaging anti-tumor agent for the treatment against a wide variety of solid tumors. However, chondrosarcomas are notorious for their resistance to conventional chemo- and radio- therapies. In this study, we report miR-23b acts as a tumor suppressor in chondrosarcoma. The expressions of miR-23b are down-regulated in chondrosarcoma patient samples and cell lines compared with adjacent normal tissues and human primary chondrocytes. In addition, overexpression of miR-23b suppresses chondrosarcoma cell proliferation. By comparison of the cisplatin resistant chondrosarcoma cells and parental cells, we observed miR-23b was significantly down regulated in cisplatin resistant cells. Moreover, we demonstrate here Src kinase is a direct target of miR-23b in chondrosarcoma cells. Overexpression of miR-23b suppresses Src-Akt pathway, leading to the sensitization of cisplatin resistant chondrosarcoma cells to cisplatin. This chemo-sensitivity effect by the miR-23b-mediated inhibition of Src-Akt pathway is verified with the restoration of Src kinase in miR-23b-overespressing chondrosarcoma cells, resulting in the acquirement of resistance to cisplatin. In summary, our study reveals a novel role of miR-23b in cisplatin resistance in chondrosarcoma and will contribute to the development of the microRNA-targeted anti-cancer therapeutics.