Western blot was carried out to detect the protein levels according to a previous study (19 (link)). After transfection with the miR-142-5p mimic, inhibitor, and the corresponding negative control for 48 h, the cells were collected to extract the total protein. The protein concentration was determined using the BCA Assay Kit (Pierce, Rockford, IL, USA) according to the manufacturer’s instruction. After that, the protein samples were subjected to a 10%–12% sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and blotted onto polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes (Bio-Rad). Thereafter, the cells were washed three times with PBS and blocked in 5% defatted milk in Tris-buffered saline with Tween (TBST) for 1 h. The membranes were then incubated with the following primary antibodies overnight at 4°C: anti-FOXO1 antibody (Abcam, Cambridge, UK), anti-FOXO3 antibody (Abcam), anti-Bcl-2 interacting mediator of cell death (Bim) antibody (Cell Signaling Technology Inc., Beverly, MA), anti-procaspase 3 antibody (Cell Signaling Technology), and anti-active caspase 3 antibody (Cell Signaling Technology). After being washed three times with TBST, the membranes were incubated with horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-conjugated antibody for 2 h. GAPDH was used as a loading control. The protein bands were visualized with enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL) (Beyotime, P.R. China).