TY  - EJOU
AU  - Deng, Xiaofan 
AU  - Yang, Yamei 
AU  - Gan, Xianfeng 
AU  - Wu, Gang 

TI  - HBx Downregulates miR-422a Expression via Activation of FOXG1/Q1/E1 in HepG2 Cells
T2  - Oncologie

PY  - 2021
VL  - 23
IS  - 2
SN  - 1765-2839

AB  - microRNA-422a (miR-422a) is downregulated in many hematopoietic tumors and solid tumors including hepatocellular carcinoma. We previously demonstrated that hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) downregulated expression of miR-422a in HCC cell line HepG2 <i>in vitro</i>. However, we explore the mechanisms underlying this action. Forkhead box proteins (FOX) G1/Q1/E1 are known to negatively regulate miR-422a expression, and this prompted us to determine whether HBx suppresses miR-422a expression via activation of FOXG1/Q1/E1. The relationship between FOXG1/Q1/E1 and miR-422a in HepG2 cells stably expressing HBx was assessed with qRT-PCR. The correlation between HBx and FOXG1/Q1/E1 was determined with qRT-PCR and western blot in vitro. The cell cycle and CCK-8 assays were used to elucidate the consequence of miR-422a transfection in HepG2-hbx cells. FOXG1/Q1/E1 activated by HBx was found to be responsible, at least in part, for the downregulation of miR-422a in HepG2 cells. miR-422a transfection hampered the growth of HepG2-hbx cells by arresting cells in G1 phase. Both FOXG1/Q1/E1 and miR-422a may be suitable molecular targets for treatment of HBV-infected HCC.
KW  - HBx; hepatocellular carcinoma; FOXG1/Q1/E1; miR-422a

DO  - 10.32604/Oncologie.2021.016900