Berberine inhibited metastasis through miR-145/MMP16 axis in vitro.

Ovarian cancer is the first leading cause of death in gynecological cancers. The continuous survival and metastasis of cancer cells are the main causes of death and poor prognosis in patients with ovarian cancer. Berberine is an effective component extracted from the rhizomes of coptis chinensis and phellodendron chinensis. In our study, we aim to explore the molecular mechanism underlying the regulation of proliferation, migration and invasion by berberine in ovarian cancer cells. CCK8 assay was used for detection of proliferative capacity of SKOV3 and 3AO cells. Wound healing assay was used to estimate cell migration and transwell assay was used to assess cell invasion. The mRNA expression of miR-145 and MMP16 were examined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The protein level of MMP16 was detected by western blot analysis. In addition, luciferase reporter assays were used to demonstrate MMP16 was a target of miR-145. The results demonstrated berberine inhibited proliferation, migration and invasion, promoted miR-145 expression, and decreased MMP16 expression in SKOV3 and 3AO cells. MMP16 was a target of miR-145. Moreover, downregulation of MMP16 contributed to the inhibition of proliferation, migration and invasion by berberine. Together, our results revealed that berberine inhibited proliferation, migration and invasion through miR-145/MMP16 in SKOV3 and 3AO cells, highlighting the potentiality of berberine to be used as a therapeutic agent for ovarian cancer.

MT3-MMP (MMP-16) is downregulated by in vitro cytokine stimulation of cartilage, but unaltered in naturally occurring equine osteoarthritis and osteochondrosis.

Matrix degradation by metalloproteinases is considered a key feature in the loss of articular cartilage seen in many joint diseases. Membrane-type matrix metalloproteinase-3 (MT3-MMP) expression is elevated in human cartilage in end-stage osteoarthritis. We investigated whether MT3-MMP is similarly regulated in cartilage in two naturally occurring arthropathies in vivo and whether proinflammatory cytokines regulate its expression in vitro. MT3-MMP expression was evaluated in cartilage from horses with osteoarthritis and osteochondrosis and compared with age- and site-matched normal cartilage. MT3-MMP also was measured in normal cartilage stimulated with proinflammatory cytokines. MT3-MMP expression was not significantly altered in either osteoarthritis or osteochondrosis cartilage. However, gene expression was significantly downregulated by the addition of recombinant human interleukin-1beta, oncostatin M, or tumor necrosis factor-alpha to normal cartilage explants. The results suggest that MT3-MMP may not have a role in matrix destruction in equine cartilage diseases. Further work is required to characterize its regulation and function.