The mechanisms of colorectal cancer cell mesenchymal–epithelial transition induced by hepatocyte exosome-derived miR-203a-3p

Abstract. Phosphatase of regenerating liver 3 (PRL3) promotes colorectal cancer (CRC) metastasis by inducing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET), the opposite of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, has been proposed as a mechanism for the establishment of metastatic neoplasms. However, the molecular mechanism of MET remains unclear. Here, we show that miR-203a-3p derived from hepatocyte exosomes inhibits Src expression, reduces epidermal growth factor receptor activity and downstream signaling pathways, and increases E-cadherin expression, which is a typical mesenchymal cell marker of MET, in CRC cells. These results show the important role of epidermal growth factor receptor in CRC cell MET.