miRNA-30a-3p inhibits metastasis and enhances radiosensitivity in esophageal carcinoma by targeting insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor

It has been demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) serve important roles in various biological processes, such as tumorigenesis. In the present study, the role of miR-30a-3p in the pathogenesis of esophageal carcinoma (EC) was investigated. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction was performed to determine the levels of miR-30a-3p expression in EC tissues and cell lines. Then, the effects of miR-30a-3p on the migration, invasion and radiosensitivity of EC cells were investigated using scratch-wound, Transwell and radiosensitivity assays, respectively. A dual-luciferase reporter assay was performed to determine potential interactions between miR-30a-3p and the 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR) of insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R). The results demonstrated that the levels of miR-30a-3p expression in EC tissues and cell lines were significantly decreased compared with those in paired healthy tissues and a human esophageal epithelial cell line. Upregulation of miR-30a-3p expression significantly suppressed migration, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and enhanced radiosensitivity in EC cells. Analysis of luciferase activity demonstrated that miR-30a-3p interacted with the 3′-UTR of IGF-1R, and knockdown of IGF-1R induced similar effects on the migration, invasion, EMT and radiosensitivity of EC cells. The results indicated that miR-30a-3p suppressed metastasis and enhanced the radiosensitivity of EC cells via downregulation IGF-1R, suggesting that miR-30a-3p may be a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of EC.