Overexpression of miR-33a led to a marked downregulation of Pim-3 expression, thereby inhibiting AKT/Gsk-3β/β-catenin signaling, which in turn reduced cell proliferation and increased the chemosensitivity of pancreatic cancer cells to gemcitabine both in vitro and in vivo. Here, AKT1 is linked to familial pancreatic carcinoma.