MicroRNA-375 inhibits oral squamous cell carcinoma cell migration and invasion by targeting platelet-derived growth factor-A

MicroRNA-375 (miR-375) serves an important role in cancer development and growth. However, little is known about the role of miR-375 in the regulation of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) metastasis and invasion. The present study measured the expression levels of miR-375 in Tca8113, UM2, UM1 and CAL-27 cell lines, using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The results demonstrated that miR-375 expression levels were significantly reduced in UM1 and CAL-27 (highly metastatic) compared with Tca8113 and UM2 (less aggressive) OSCC cell lines. Furthermore, it was revealed that overexpression of miR-375 suppressed the migration and invasion of UM1 cells. Based on a luciferase reporter assay, platelet-derived growth factor-A (PDGF-A) was identified as a direct target gene of miR-375. Additionally, overexpression of PDGF-A significantly reversed the effect of miR-375 on cell migration and invasion in UM1 cells. These data demonstrated that miR-375 suppressed OSCC cell migration and invasion by targeting PDGF-A, which may be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of OSCC.