MicroRNA-375 inhibits laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma progression via targeting CST1

•miR-375 is lowly expressed in LSCC cell lines.•miR-375 regulates the proliferation, migration and invasion of LSCC cells.•miR-375 targets CST1.•miR-375 inhibits proliferation of LSCC cells by targeting CST1. This study aims to explore the effect and mechanism of miR-375 in Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (LSCC) cell progression. LSCC cells (LSC-1 and TU177) were transfected with miR-375-mimic, miR-375-inhibitor or miR-375-mimic+oe-CST1. The expression of miR-375, CST1, MMP-2, and MMP-9 was measured. The effect of miR-375-mimic, miR-375-inhibitor or miR-375-mimic+oe-CST1 on cell biological functions, including cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis, was also assessed. The potential relationship between CST1 and miR-375 was predicted by Jefferson software and validated by dual luciferase reporter gene assay. Downregulated miR-375 expression was found in LSCC cells. Overexpression of miR-375 inhibited the viability and migration and promoted apoptosis of LSCC cells. Jefferson database and dual luciferase reporter gene assay confirmed that miR-375 directly targeted CST1. Overexpression of CST1 could reverse the anti-cancer effect of miR-375 overexpression in LSCC cells. Collected evidence showed that miR-375/CST1 axis was implicated in LSCC progression. Level 3