Effect of the hsa‑microRNA 200c‑3p/ZEB1 loop in epithelial‑mesenchymal transition of ovarian cancer cells

Ovarian cancer (OC) is a disease often diagnosed at advanced stages with distant metastasis, which is characterized by the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of cells.The aim of the present study was to analyze the target genes of Homo sapiens microRNA 200c-3p (hsa-miR-200c-3p) and their associated proteins, which have a role in the EMT process.The expression level of hsa-miR-200c-3p was analyzed in ovarian tissues obtained from healthy individuals (n=15) and patients with advanced epithelial OC (EOC; n=15).Zinc finger enhancer-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) is one of the target genes of hsa-miR-200c-3p and was identified using in silico methods.The expression level of ZEB1 was analyzed in both groups.ZEB1, vimentin and E-cadherin proteins were analyzed using immunohistochemistry (IHC) in healthy and OC tissues.The expression of hsa-miR-200c-3p was significantly increased in patients with OC (P