LIMD2 targeted by miR-34a promotes the proliferation and invasion of non-small cell lung cancer cells

A previous study indicated that LIM domain containing 2 (LIMD2) is an oncogene in a variety of human cancers, including breast, bladder and thyroid cancers, and melanoma; however, the role of LIMD2 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains largely unknown. In the present study, by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis, it was demonstrated that LIMD2 was significantly upregulated in NSCLC tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. Consistently, LIMD2 was also upregulated in NSCLC cell lines. Furthermore, the present study reported that knockdown of LIMD2 significantly inhibited the proliferation and invasion of H1299 and A549 cells by Cell Counting Kit-8 and Transwell assays. In addition, the expression of LIMD2 was determined to be regulated by microRNA (miR)-34a in the present study. RT-qPCR and western blot analysis indicated that overexpression of miR-34a notably reduced the mRNA and protein expression levels of LIMD2 in H1299 and H549 cells. Additionally, the present study reported an inverse correlation between the expression of LIMD2 and miR-34a in NSCLC tissues. A luciferase reporter assay also demonstrated that miR-34a directly targeted the mRNA expression of LIMD2 in NSCLC cells. Finally, miR-34a was revealed to possess a tumor suppressive role in NSCLC cells. Collectively, the results of the present study revealed that LIMD2 promoted NSCLC progression and was regulated by miR-34a.