MiR-142-3p Overexpression Increases Chemo-Sensitivity of NSCLC by Inhibiting HMGB1-Mediated Autophagy

Abstract

Background: Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a deadly cancer with high mortality rate. Drug resistance represents a main obstacle in NSCLC treatment. High mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) protein promotes drug resistance in NSCLC cells by activating protective autophagy. Methods: In the current study, we investigated the regulatory role of microRNA-142-3p (miR-142-3p) in HMGB1-mediated autophagy of NSCLC cells and its impact on drug resistance of NSCLC in vitro and in vivo. HMGB1 was identified as a putative target gene of miR-142-3p by in silico analysis. Our luciferase reporter assay results confirmed that miR-142-3p directly targets the 3’-UTR of HMGB1 in NSCLC cells. Results: MiR-142-3p overexpression suppressed while miR-142-3p knockdown increased HMGB1 mRNA and protein expression. Starvation induced HMGB1 expression and activated autophagy in NSCLC cells. The starvation-induced autophagy was inhibited by miR-142-3p overexpression or HMGB1 knockdown. Moreover, miR-142-3p overexpression or HMGB1 knockdown increased PI3K, Akt, and mTOR phosphorylation. Inhibition of PI3K or mTOR restored starvation-induced autophagy inhibited by miR-142-3p overexpression or HMGB1 knockdown. Conclusions: These results demonstrated that miR-142-3p regulates starvation-induced autophagy of NSCLC cells by directly downregulating HMGB1 and subsequently activating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway. Further, miR-142-3p overexpression inhibited anticancer drug-induced autophagy and increased chemo-sensitivity of NSCLC in vitro and in vivo. These findings shed light on the therapeutic potential of miR-142-3p in combating acquired NSCLC chemo-resistance.