The microRNA-302b-inhibited insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 2 signaling pathway induces glioma cell apoptosis by targeting nuclear factor IA

MicroRNAs are small noncoding RNAs that post-transcriptionally control the expression of genes involved in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) development. Although miR-302b functions as a tumor suppressor, its role in GBM is still unclear. Therefore, this study comprehensively explored the roles of miR-302b-mediated gene networks in GBM cell death. We found that miR-302b levels were significantly higher in primary astrocytes than in GBM cell lines. miR-302b overexpression dose dependently reduced U87-MG cell viability and induced apoptosis through caspase-3 activation and poly(ADP ribose) polymerase degradation. A transcriptome microarray revealed 150 downregulated genes and 380 upregulated genes in miR-302b-overexpressing cells. Nuclear factor IA (NFIA), higher levels of which were significantly related to poor survival, was identified as a direct target gene of miR-302b and was involved in miR-302b-induced glioma cell death. Higher NFIA levels were observed in GBM cell lines and human tumor sections compared with astrocytes and non-tumor tissues, respectively. NFIA knockdown significantly enhanced apoptosis. We found high levels of insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 2 (IGFBP2), another miR-302b-downregulated gene, in patients with poor survival. We verified that NFIA binds to the IGFBP2 promoter and transcriptionally enhances IGFBP2 expression levels. We identified that NFIA-mediated IGFBP2 signaling pathways are involved in miR-302b-induced glioma cell death. The identification of a regulatory loop whereby miR-302b inhibits NFIA, leading to a decrease in expression of IGFBP-2, may provide novel directions for developing therapies to target glioblastoma tumorigenesis.