BACKGROUND: Doxorubicin (DOX) is a potent chemotherapeutic agent used to treat colon cancer. Despite impressive initial clinical responses, drug resistance has dramatically compromised the effectiveness of DOX. However, the underlying mechanisms of chemotherapeutic resistance in colon cancer remain poorly understood.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this study, we compared the expression of miR-222-3p in DOX-resistant colon cancer cells (LoVo/ADR) with the corresponding DOX-sensitive parental cells (LoVo/S) using quantitative real-time PCR. In addition, miR-222-3p inhibitors were infected into LoVo/ADR cell lines and the effects of this treatment were assessed. The Cell Counting Kit 8 assay was employed to verify the sensitivity of colon cancer cell lines to DOX. EdU (5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine) assay, flow cytometry, and in vivo subcutaneous tumorigenesis were used to assess cell proliferation and apoptosis. Transwell and wound healing assays were used to investigate cell migration after adding DOX. Additionally, the expression of forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2), P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and caspase pathway-associated markers was assessed by western blotting.

RESULTS: Our results showed that miR-222-3p was upregulated in LoVo/ADR compared with the expression in LoVo/S cells. Additionally, downregulation of miR-222-3p in LoVo/ADR cells increased their sensitivity to DOX, reduced P-gp expression, and activated the caspase pathway. However, the downregulation of FOXP2 could efficiently reverse the effect of miR-222-3p inhibitors on LoVo/ADR cells.

CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our results showed that miR-222-3p induced DOX resistance via suppressing FOXP2, upregulating P-gp, and inhibiting the caspase pathway.

Keywords: Caspases, Colonic Neoplasms, Drug Resistance, P-Glycoprotein, Down-Regulation, Drug Resistance, Multiple, Forkhead Transcription Factors, transcriptional activation