RESUMO
Melanoma is a malignant skin cancer type associated with a high mortality rate, but its treatment is currently not ideal. Both microRNA (miR)214 and cell adhesion molecule 1 (CADM1) are differentially expressed in melanoma, but their role in this cancer type remains unknown. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the role of CADM1 and miR214 in melanoma to identify novel targets for its treatment. The expression levels of CADM1 and miR214 in cells were detected by reverse transcriptionquantitative PCR (RTqPCR). Moreover, cell viability, migration and invasion were measured by MTT, wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. In addition, the relative expression levels of epithelialmesenchymal transition (EMT)related proteins in cells were detected by RTqPCR and western blotting. It was found that the expression of CADM1 was inhibited in melanoma cells, while miR214 expression was increased during melanoma tumorigenesis. Furthermore, miR214 mimics promoted the viability, migration and invasion of melanoma cells. It was also demonstrated that the downregulation of CADM1 reversed the inhibitory effect of the miR214 inhibitor in melanoma. Moreover, overexpression of CADM1 inhibited the EMT process in melanoma, while the miR214 inhibitor suppressed the EMT process. The results also indicated that miR214 promoted the EMT process by downregulating CADM1, which may represent a novel mechanism for the progression of melanoma.