DNMT1-induced miR-378a-3p silencing promotes angiogenesis via the NF-κB signaling pathway by targeting TRAF1 in hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND: Angiogenesis plays an important role in the occurrence, development and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). According to previous studies, miR-378a participates in tumorigenesis and tumor metastasis, but its exact role in HCC angiogenesis remains poorly understood. METHODS: qRT-PCR was used to investigate the expression of miR-378a-3p in HCC tissues and cell lines. The effects of miR-378a-3p on HCC in vitro and in vivo were examined by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8), Transwell, tube formation and Matrigel plug assays, RNA sequencing, bioinformatics, luciferase reporter, immunofluorescence and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays were used to detect the molecular mechanism by which miR-378a-3p inhibits angiogenesis. RESULTS: We confirmed that miR-378a-3p expression was significantly downregulated and associated with higher microvascular density (MVD) in HCC; miR-378a-3p downregulation indicated a short survival time in HCC patients. miR-378a-3p knockdown led to a significant increase in angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo. We found that miR-378a-3p directly targeted TNF receptor associated factor 1 (TRAF1) to attenuate NF-κB signaling, and then downregulated secreted vascular endothelial growth factor. DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1)-mediated hypermethylation of miR-378a-3p was responsible for downregulating miR-378a-3p. Moreover, a series of investigations indicated that p65 initiated a positive feedback loop that could upregulate DNMT1 to promote hypermethylation of the miR-378a-3p promoter. CONCLUSION: Our study indicates a novel DNMT1/miR-378a-3p/TRAF1/NF-κB positive feedback loop in HCC cells, which may become a potential therapeutic target for HCC. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13046-021-02110-6.