miR-590 promotes the proliferation of HUMSCs and induces ECM synthesis by targeting Smad7

MicroRNA (miR)-590 has been established to be a promoter of cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and an inhibitor of apoptosis in numerous cancer cell lines. However, its effects on non-cancer cells remain to be elucidated. miR-590 was transfected into human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HUMSCs), and the cell proliferation rate was determined using a Cell-Light 5-ethynyl-20-deoxyuridine Apollo 567 kit and the presence of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins were detected using western blot analysis and immunofluorescence microscopy. Using bioinformatic analysis and dual-luciferase assays, the novel target miR-590 was identified. In addition, the effects of miR-590 on cell proliferation and ECM enhancement were also evaluated. The results of the present study demonstrated that miR-590 interacts directly with the 3′-untranslated region of Mothers Against Decapentaplegic Homolog 7 (Smad7), which is an important factor in transforming growth factor-β signaling pathway. Overexpression of miR-590 downregulated Smad7 expression at the mRNA and protein level, and subsequently resulted in cell proliferation and ECM accumulation. Additionally, the transfection of small interfering RNA targeting Smad7 in HUMSCs produced similar effects on cell proliferation and ECM to the overexpression of miR-590. The results of the present study indicated that miR-590 affects HUMSC proliferation by directly targeting Smad7.