Lb-miR166a has a potentially positive impact on the treatment of kidney cancer

Abstract Background Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the seventh most common tumor worldwide. The incidence rate of RCC ranks second among urinary system tumors, and the incidence rate has been increasing in recent years. Recent studies have shown that plant miRNAs can be absorbed into organisms through diet, and can regulate target gene expression and physiological function of predators across species. As a traditional Chinese medicine, Lycium barbarum has a wide range of antitumor effects. However, there are no reports on the cross-border regulation of tumors by Lycium barbarum miRNA (Lb-miRNA). Methods Human RCC cells (Caki-1) were cultured in vitro. The overexpression group of Lb-miR166a was constructed using lentivirus transfection. The effect of Lb-miR166a on the expression of RCC cells was analyzed using transcriptome sequencing, and differentially expressed genes were screened. Combined with bioinformatics technology, the relevant mechanisms by which Lb-miR166a regulates the occurrence and development of RCC were screened and verified, and in vivo tumor-bearing experiments on nude mice verified the effect of Lb-miR166a expression on the occurrence, development, invasion, and metastasis of RCC. Results Transcriptome sequencing analysis showed that Lb-miR166a regulated the expression of a variety of genes in tumor cells and regulated a large number of signaling pathways related to tumor occurrence and development. The overall finding was that Lb-miR166a inhibited tumor cell proliferation, promoted tumor cell apoptosis, and inhibited cell invasion and metastasis. The tumor-bearing experiment in nude mice also showed that the subcutaneous tumor formation volume decreased in Lb-miR166a group mice, as did the expression of tumor cell Ki67 and the number of liver metastases. Conclusion This study explains the role of Lb-miR166a in the treatment of RCC and its underlying mechanisms. These results further improve the antitumor mechanism of L. barbarum and provide ideas for the clinical development of targeted drugs for the treatment of RCC.