MicroRNA-202 suppresses glycolysis of pancreatic cancer by targeting hexokinase 2.

Various studies have identified miR-202 critically participated in the development of different cancers. However, the potential mechanisms underlying the carcinogenesis of pancreatic cancer (PC) still remains elusive. In the study, cell proliferation assay, colony formation assay, EdU incorporation assay, Luciferase reporter assay, lactate production, glucose consumption assay, real-time PCR and western blot were used to investigate the mechanism of hexokinase 2 (HK2) regulated by miR-202 in pancreatic cancer in vitro and in vivo. Here we found that miR-202 was decreased in the PC tissues, and its low expression was correlated with a poor prognosis of PC patients. Overexpression of miR-202 in PC cells reduced cell proliferation and tumorigenesis by impairing glycolysis, while downregulation of miR-202 promoted the cells proliferative capacity. Mechanically, we demonstrated that HK2, an enzyme that catalyzes the irreversible rate-limiting step of glycolysis, as the direct target of miR-202. Overexpression of miR-202 suppressed both the mRNA and protein levels of HK2, whereas re-introduction of HK2 abrogated miR-202-mediated glycolytic inhibition. In addition, the expression of miR-202 was negatively associated with HK2 level in a cohort of PC tissues. Our findings validate the mechanism that miR-202 reprograms the metabolic process to promote PC progression, thus providing potential prognostic predictors for PC patients.