Ovarian cancer (OC) is the most lethal gynecological cancer. The molecular mechanism of it is complicated, and numerous researches suggest that microRNAs are key regulators for it. This study was to investigate the pivotal role of miR-629 in the progression of OC and to reveal the possible molecular mechanism of its action. Testis-specific Y-like protein 5 (TSPYL5) is a tumor suppressor gene in various cancers, but there is little for its role in OC. OC OVCAR3 cells were transfected with the miR-629 vector, miR-629 inhibitor, and/or small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting TSPYL5 (si-TSPYL5), respectively. After transfection, cell apoptosis, the ability of migration, and invasion were explored, as well as the level of miR-629 and TSPYL5 protein expression were detected by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot. Compared with the control, there was increasing of miR-629, and decreasing of TSPYL5 and caspase 3 in OC tissue. Overexpression of miR-629 promoted the cell ability of migration and invasion and reduced OC cell apoptosis. In addition, elevated cancer inhibition ability of TSPYL5 induced by the miR-629 inhibitor was significantly blocked by inhibition of TSPYL5 (si-TSPYL5). All the above results suggested that miR-629 could promote OC proliferation, migration, and invasion by directly suppressing TSPYL5 expression, and inhibition of miR-629 might serve as a therapeutic target for OC.
Keywords: TSPYL5; cell proliferation; miR-629; migration and invasion; ovarian cancer.