MicroRNA-1277 inhibits proliferation and migration of hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells by targeting and suppressing BMP4 expression and reflects the significant indicative role in hepatocellular carcinoma pathology and diagnosis after magnetic resonance imaging assessment.

Our study aimed to investigate the roles and possible regulatory mechanism of miR-1277 in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). HCC patients were identified from patients who were diagnosed with focal liver lesions using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The expression levels of miR-1277 in the serum of HCC patients and HepG2 cells were measured. Then miR-1277 mimics, miR-1277 inhibitor and scramble RNA were transfected into cells. The effects of miR-1277 overexpression and suppression on HepG2 cell proliferation, migration and invasion were then investigated. Additionally, the expression levels of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related markers, including E-cadherin, β-catenin and Vimentin, were detected. Besides, target prediction and luciferase reporter assay were performed to explore the potential target of miR-1277. MiR-1277 was significantly down-regulated in the serum of HCC patients and HepG2 cells. Suppression of miR-1277 promoted HepG2 cell proliferation, migration and invasion, whereas overexpression of miR-1277 had opposite effects. In addition, after miR-1277 was suppressed, the expressions of E-cadherin and β-catenin were significantly increased, while the expressions of Vimentin were markedly decreased. Besides, Morphogenetic Protein 4 (BMP4) was identified as the direct target of miR-1277. Knockdown of BMP4 reversed the effects of miR-1277 suppression on HepG2 cell migration and invasion, as well as the expressions of E-cadherin, β-catenin and Vimentin. Our results indicate that down-regulation of miR-1277 may promote the migration and invasion of HepG2 cells by targeting BMP4 to induce EMT. Combination of MRI and miR-1277 level will facilitate the diagnosis and treatment of HCC.