miR-1229-3p promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis of cervical cancer cells by targeting FBXL5

This study aimed to explore the biological function of miR-1229-3p in the occurrence and development of cervical cancer (CC). The expression levels of miR-1229-3p and FBXL5 in CC tissues and cell lines were detected by RT-qPCR. Cell proliferation ability was evaluated by MTT. Cell migration and invasion abilities were detected by Transwell. The expression of EMT-related markers were detected by RT-qPCR. The targeting relationship between miR-1229-3p and FBXL5 was verified by dual luciferase reporter assay. The expression of miR-1229-3p was significantly upregulated in CC tissues and CC cell lines. High expression of miR-1229-3p was associated with poor differentiation and lymph node metastasis. Overexpression of miR-1229-3p could promote the proliferation, migration, invasion of CC cells, and induce the EMT process. Dual luciferase reporter assays confirmed that FBXL5 was the direct target gene of miR-1229-3p, and their expressions showed a significant negative correlation in CC tissues. Overexpression of FBXL5 could reverse the carcinogenic effects caused by miR-1229-3p. miR-1229-3p directly inhibits the expression of FBXL5, thereby activating the EMT process, and ultimately promoting the proliferation, migration, and invasion of CC cells.