This study aimed to explore B-cell lymphoma cells' proliferation and apoptosis under targeted regulation of FOXO3 by miR-155. We analyzed the differences between B-cell lymphoma cells and B lymphocytes in expressions of miR-155 and FOXO3, explored the effects of miR-155 on proliferation and apoptosis of B-cell lymphoma cells, and relevant mechanisms, and also analyzed the relationship between expressions of miR-155 and FOXO3 in 42 patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and clinical characteristics of them. B-cell lymphoma cells showed a higher expression of miR-155 and a low expression of FOXO3 than B lymphocytes (both P<0.05). B-cell lymphoma cells transfected with miR-155-inhibitor showed significantly decreased expression of miR-155, significantly weakened cell proliferation ability, and increased cell apoptosis rate (all P<0.05), and they also showed upregulated expression of FOXO3 (P<0.05). Dual-luciferase reporter assay revealed that there were targeted binding sites between miR-155 and FOXO3. Compared with B-cell lymphoma cells transfected with miR-155-inhibitor alone, those with co-transfection showed lower expression of FOXO3, higher proliferation and lower cell apoptosis rate (all P<0.05). The expression of miR-155 in DLBCL tissues was higher than that in tumor-adjacent tissues (P<0.05), and the expressions of miR-155 and FOXO3 were closely related to the international prognostic index (IPI) and the 5-year prognosis and survival of the patients (P<0.05). miR-155 can promote the proliferation of B-cell lymphoma cells and suppress apoptosis of them by targeted inhibition of FOCXO3, and both over-expression of miR-155 and low expression of FOXO3 are related to poor prognosis of DLBCL patients.
Keywords: Apoptosis; B-cell lymphoma; Clinical characteristics; FOXO3; Proliferation; miR-155.