microRNA-195 promotes apoptosis and suppresses tumorigenicity of human colorectal cancer cells

► miR-195 is downregulated in human CRC tissues and cell lines. ► miR-195 reduces cell viability, promotes apoptosis and suppresses tumorigenicity. ► Antiapoptotic Bcl-2 is a direct target of miR-195. ► Proapoptotic effect of miR-195 is mainly through targeting Bcl-2. Deregulated microRNAs and their roles in cancer development have attracted much attention. In the present study, we analyzed the roles of miR-195 in colorectal cancer pathogenesis, as its participation in some other types of cancer has been suggested by previous reports. By comparing miR-195 expression in 81 human colorectal cancer tissues and matched non-neoplastic mucosa tissues, we found that miR-195 was downregulated in cancer tissues. And restoration of miR-195 in colorectal cancer cell lines HT29 and LoVo could reduce cell viability, promote cell apoptosis and suppress tumorigenicity. Moreover, important antiapoptotic Bcl-2 was identified to be directly targeted by miR-195, and miR-195 was further suggested to exert its proapoptotic function mainly through targeting Bcl-2 expression. Taken together, our study provides important roles of miR-195 in colorectal cancer pathogenesis and implicates its potential application in cancer therapy.