MicroRNA-212 suppresses cell proliferation in nasopharyngeal carcinoma by targeting ELF3

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is an epithelial malignancy of the head and neck that is prevalent in China. The present study investigated the molecular mechanisms of microRNA-212 (miR-212) and E74-like factor 3 (ELF3) in NPC cell lines and tissues. Using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, the present study identified that miR-212 expression was downregulated in NPC cell lines and tissues. Furthermore, an elevated expression level of miR-212 was revealed to inhibit NPC cell proliferation, as determined using a cell counting kit-8 assay in vitro. ELF3 was identified as a direct target of miR-212 in NPC cells by a luciferase reporter assay. Additionally, the expression levels of miR-212 and ELF3 were negatively correlated in NPC tissues. The expression levels of ELF3 and miR-212 were associated with metastasis and TNM stage in patients with NPC. In summary, the present study indicated that miR-212 was downregulated in NPC and suppressed cell proliferation. This suggested that the miR-212/ELF3 axis may serve as a novel target for the diagnosis and treatment of NPC.