Background: Chemotherapy is the standard treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, chemoresistance frequently occurs, making the treatment of NSCLC more difficult.
Method: We combined clinical and experimental studies to establish the role of microRNA (miR)-34c in NSCLC metastasis and chemoresistance.
Results: MiR-34c expression was significantly decreased in patients with NSCLC who showed a poor chemoresponse and metastasis. Overexpression of miR-34c sensitized NSCLC cells to paclitaxel and cisplatin both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we found that NOTCH1 was target of miR-34c in NSCLC cells and played a key role in the effects of miR-34c on NSCLC.
Conclusion: NSCLC metastasis and chemoresistance are suppressed though the miR-34c/NOTCH1 axis. MiR-34c has important implications in the development of therapeutic strategies for metastasis and chemoresistance in NSCLC.
Keywords: NOTCH1; Non-small cell lung cancer; chemoresistance; gene expression; metastasis; miR-34c.