Hexokinase 2 (HK2), the tumor promoter in glioma, is downregulated by miR-218/Bmi1 pathway

In cancer, glycolysis driving enzymes and their regulating microRNAs are one of the key focus of oncology research lately. The glycolytic enzyme hexokinase 2 (HK2) is crucial for the Warburg effect in human glioma, the most common malignant brain tumor. In the present study, we studied the tumorigenic role of HK2 in glioma, and clarified the mechanism of miR-218 induced HK2 regulation in glioma development. The HK2 expression in patient derived glioma and non neoplastic brain tissue was quantified. The HK2 silenced U87 and U251 cell lines were assessed for their proliferation, migration and invasive potential in vitro, while the tumor forming potential of U87 cells was evaluated in vivo. The untreated cell lines served as control. The HK2 expression in (a) lentivirus-infected, miR-218 overexpressing and (b) shRNA mediated Bmi1 silenced U87 and U251 glioma cell lines were quantified. Luciferase reporter assay, qRT-PCR analysis and WB were employed as required. The HK2 expression was significantly increased in glioma tissues comparing with the non neoplastic brain tissues and was positively correlated with the glioma grade. Silencing HK2 in glioma cell lines significantly decreased their proliferation, migration, invasion and tumorigenic abilities. Although, overexpression of miR-218 significantly downregulated the HK2 expression, luciferase reporter assay failed to show HK2 as the direct target of miR-218. A direct correlation, however, was observed between HK2 and Bmi-1, the direct target of miR-218. Taken together, our findings confirmed the tumorigenic activity of HK2 in glioma, and the involvement of the miR218/Bmi1 pathway in the regulation of its expression.