Research Paper Volume 12, Issue 18 pp 18019—18032

Figure 4. MiR-424-5p is downregulated in PTC tissues, binds to AGAP2-AS1 and MMP2, and regulates invasion and migration of PTC. (A) Expression of miR-424-5p in 40 pairs of PTC tissues and paired non-cancerous tissues, assessed using qRT-PCR. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyze the differences between the two groups; data are presented as the median with a range. **P < 0.01. (B) Pearson’s correlation analysis between AGAP2-AS1 and miR-424-5p expression in PTC tissues (R² = 0.1046, p = 0.0418). (C) Trans-well assay of invasion and migration of PTC cells after transfection with miR-424-5p mimic or NC. Data are presented as the mean ± S.D, analyzed using an independent samples t-test. **P < 0.01 vs. NC. (D) Wound healing assay to assess the migration ability of PTC cells after transfection with miR-424-5p mimic or NC. (E) Predicted miR-424-5p binding sites in AGAP2-AS1 (AGAP2-AS1-Wt) and the designed mutant sequence (AGAP2-AS1-Mt) are indicated. HEK 293T cells were transfected with AGAP2-AS1-Wt, AGAP2-AS1-Mt, and the indicated miRNAs, and luciferase reporter assay was conducted. Data are presented as the mean ± S.D, analyzed using an independent samples t-test; **P < 0.01 vs. AGAP2-AS1-Wt + NC. (F) Predicted miR-424-5p binding sites in the 3′-UTR region of MMP2 (MMP2-3′UTR-Wt) and the designed mutant sequence (MMP2-3′UTR-Mt) are indicated. HEK 293T cells were transfected with MMP2-3′UTR-Wt or ATAD2-3′UTR-Mt and the indicated miRNAs, and luciferase reporter assay was conducted. Data are presented as the mean ± S.D., analyzed using independent samples t-test. **P < 0.01 vs. MMP2-3′UTR-Wt + NC.