Here, we show that low-dose ionizing radiation (IR) induces miR-29c expression in female mouse liver, while inhibiting its expression in HepG2, a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line which is used as a model system in this study. miR-29c expression is downregulated in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells, which is inversely correlated with WIP1 expression. miR-29c attenuates luciferase activity of a reporter harboring the 3'UTR binding motif of WIP1 mRNA.
Reduced expression of Wip1 and BRCA-2 region transcription unit CG005 was significantly correlated with poorer differentiation of HCCs, and mRNA expression of these genes was significantly reduced in HCCs associated with portal vein involvement compared with HCCs without such involvement.