Inhibition of miR-144-3p exacerbates non-small cell lung cancer progression by targeting CEP55

Increasing evidence has indicated that microRNA dysregulation is closely related to the occurrence and development of cancers. Herein, we investigated the relationship between miR-144-3p and CEP55 expression. We then evaluated the association between miR-144-3p and CEP55 expression and proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. Real-time quantitative PCR results revealed that CEP55 was over-expressed whereas miR-144-3p was under-expressed in NSCLC tissues. CCK-8 assay, wound healing assay, and flow cytometry further revealed that overexpression of miR-144-3p significantly inhibited proliferation and migration, but promoted apoptosis of A549 cells. Conversely, inhibition of miR-144-3p promoted proliferation and migration but suppressed apoptosis of H460 cells. Dual-luciferase reporter assay revealed that miR-144-3p modulated malignant properties of cancer cells by targeting CEP55. Overexpression of CEP55 partially blocked the inhibitory effect of miR-144-3p on proliferation and migration of A549 cells and induced apoptosis of A549 cells. CEP55 knockdown modulated the increase in proliferation and migration and the decrease in apoptosis of H460 cells following miR-144-3p inhibition. These findings demonstrated that miR-144-3p suppresses NSCLC development by inhibiting CEP55 expression.