MiR-30a inhibits osteolysis by targeting RunX2 in giant cell tumor of bone

•MiR-30a is down-regulated in GCT.•MiE-30a directly regulates RunX2 by binding its 3′-UTR.•MiR-30a shows regulatory role in osteolysis and bone resorption.

RunX2 has been identified to crucially regulate the osteolysis in giant cell tumor of bone. MiR-30a is an intronic miRNA identified as tumor suppressor, but little is known about its role in giant tumor cell of bone. In our research, we reported miR-30a was down-regulated in GCT whereas RunX2 was highly expressed. Further research proved that miR-30a can regulate the expression of RunX2 by binding to its 3′-UTR, which influence the osteoclast differentiation and osteolysis formation. Thus, these results suggest that miR-30a could directly target RunX2 and participate in osteolysis in GCT.