SMAD2 and neoplasm: The results validated that down-regulation of HDAC3 or TGIF1, or up-regulation of miR-296-3p resulted in suppressed tumor growth (Fig. 5a-c), elevated apoptosis rate (Fig. 5d, e) and inhibited TGF-β1, Smad2 and Smad3 expression (Fig. 5f).