The main treatment of
breast cancer includes surgical resection,
radiotherapy,
chemotherapy, endocrine
therapy, and
molecular targeted therapy, but the outcomes remain unsatisfactory. Previous studies demonstrated that
echinacoside,
microRNA (
miRNA/miR)-4306 and miR-4508 were associated with
lymph node metastasis, chemoresistance and self-renewal capability in
breast cancer, but in-depth studies on the underlying mechanism of their anticancer effects have not been performed to date. In order to identify the role of miR-4306 and miR-4508, and the mechanism of the antitumor effect of
echinacoside in
breast cancer, the present study first examined the expression of miR-4306 and miR-4508 in
breast cancer tissues to examine their possible role in the development of
breast cancer, then evaluated the effect of
echinacoside on the expression of miR-4306 and miR-4508 on the viability, apoptosis, cell cycle, migration, and invasion abilities of
breast cancer cells to explore the anti-
cancer effect of
echinacoside and the involvement of miR-4306 and miR-4508. Finally, the
breast cancer cells and mice bearing
breast cancer xenografts were treated with
echinacoside and inhibitors of miR-4508 or miR-4306 to confirm their role on the anticancer effect of
echinacoside. The results showed that miR-4306 and miR-4508 were decreased in
breast cancer tissues and cells.
Echinacoside inhibited cell proliferation, invasion and migration, and promoted the apoptosis of
breast cancer cells by downregulating the expression of miR-4306 and miR-4508. In conclusion, this is the first study to show the association between
echinacoside and
miRNAs in
cancer. The present study elucidates an underlying molecular mechanism of the antitumor effect of
echinacoside on
breast cancer, and thus may contribute to preventive and therapeutic strategies for
breast cancer.