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Objective To investigate the effects of metformin on the proliferation, apoptosis and migration ability of human hepatocellular carcinoma cells HCCLM3. Methods HCCLM3 cells were treated with different concentrations of metformin. Cell proliferation was assessed by CCK-8 assay. The expression of related apoptosis genes, Bax and Bcl-2 were determined by RT-PCR. Cell migration was determined by scratch experiment. Results Metformin decreased the proliferation of HCCLM3 cells in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner and the cell proliferation inhibition rate was significantly higher than the control group (P < 0.05) . The migration of HCCLM3 was inhibited when the concentration of metformin reaches 10mmol/L. The expression of Bax mRNA was up-regulated, while Bcl-2 was down-regulated after 48h treated. Conclusion Metformin can inhibit HCCLM3 cell proliferation and migration, and affect the expression of apoptosis related gene Bax and Bcl-2 in a concentration and time-dependent manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]