miR-34a expands myeloid-derived suppressor cells via apoptosis inhibition

•Over-expression of miR-34a increases the number of MDSCs.•miR-34a inhibits the apoptosis of MDSCs, but does not affects their proliferation.•miR-34a may inhibit the apoptosis of MDSCs via targeting the p2rx7, Tia1 and plekhf1.

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are a heterogeneous population and show significant expansion under pathological conditions. microRNA plays important roles in many biological processes, whether microRNAs have a function in the expansion of MDSCs is still not very clear. In this study, miR-34a overexpression can induce the expansion of MDSCs in bone marrow chimera and transgenic mice model. The experimental results suggest that miR-34a inhibited the apoptosis of MDSCs but did not affect the proliferation of MDSCs. The distinct mRNA microarray profiles of MDSCs of wild type and miR-34a over-expressing MDSCs combined with the target prediction of miR-34a suggest that miR-34a may target genes such as p2rx7, Tia1, and plekhf1 to inhibit the apoptosis of MDSCs. Taken together, miR-34a contributes to the expansion of MDSCs by inhibiting the apoptosis of MDSCs.