The tumor suppressor, miR-198, affects central pathways in tumorigenesis and in the immune response of hepatocellular carcinoma cells

Aims: miRNA are small, non-coding RNA molecules that inhibit gene expression by targeting various transcripts. In previous studies we have shown that miR-198 is significantly down-regulated in HCV positive hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs), affecting markedly the cell growth of hepatoma cells. Methods: In order to characterize the function of miR-198 we performed three different approaches. First, we screened databases, which predict putative target transcripts of miRNAs by algorithm calculations. In the second approach, we overexpressed miR-198 in hepatoma cells. Cell lysates were used for immunoprecipitation of…