RESUMO
Thyroid cancer is the most prevalent malignant tumor of the endocrine organs and accounts for one third of all head and neck tumors. Dysregulation of microRNAs is wellknown to contribute to the development of various cancers, including papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), which accounts for 8090% of all thyroid cancer cases. The present study aimed to investigate the expression, functional roles of microRNA150 (miR150) and its direct target gene in PTC. miR150 expression in PTC tissues and cell lines was analyzed by reverse transcriptionquantitative polymerase chain reaction (RTqPCR). After transfection with miR150 mimics, cell proliferation, migration and invasion was analyzed by MTT and Transwell assays, respectively. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to investigate the potential target genes of miR150, which were then confirmed by luciferase reporter assay, RTqPCR and western blotting. Functional assays were also applied to investigate the effects of endogenous Rhoassociated protein kinase 1 (ROCK1) in PTC. miR150 was demonstrated to be significantly downregulated in PTC tissues and cell lines. In addition, reduced miR150 expression was obviously correlated with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis in PTC patients. Restoration of miR150 expression significantly inhibited PTC cell proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro. Furthermore, ROCK1 was identified as a direct target gene of miR150. Therefore, ROCK1 knockdown may serve tumor suppressive functions in PTC, induced by miR150 overexpression. In conclusion, miR150 overexpression in PTC may inhibit growth and metastasis of PTC cells. miR150/ROCK1based targeted therapy may be a potential strategy for the treatment of PTC.