MiR-29c is frequently dysregulated in many cancers; however, the roles of miR-29c in pancreatic cancer (PC) and underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the role of miR-29c in PC. Using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, we demonstrated that miR-29c was frequently downregulated in clinical PC tissues and cell lines. Overexpression of miR-29c significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of PC cells in vitro, which demonstrated that miR-29c acts as a tumor suppressor in PC cells. Further analysis revealed that ITGB1 is one of the functional target genes of miR-29c, and knockdown of ITGB1 inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of PC cells, which was similar to the effects of overexpression of miR-29c. Taken together, our results highlight the significance of miR-29c-ITGB1 interaction in the development and progression of PC.
Keywords: ITGB1; miR-29c; pancreatic cancer; tumor suppressor.