The expression of HMGA proteins is usually low or absent in most of normal adult tissues; however, overexpression of HMGA proteins has been observed in several human malignancies and has been found to correlate with occurrence of metastasis and poor prognosis. Moreover, transgenic mice overexpressing either HMGA1 or HMGA2 develop lymphoma and pituitary adenomas, which strongly suggest oncogenic property of these proteins [59–62]. It could promote tumour progression if HMGA1 dominantly up-regulates miR-196 expression; however, if miR-196 significantly inhibits HMGA2 protein synthesis, it could inhibit tumour progression. Thus, ultimate impact of miR-196 on the tumour pathogenesis will be dependent on the balance of regulation of miR-196 expression and miR-196 targeting molecules (oncogenes or tumour suppression genes) in specific cells. These regulation mechanisms of miR-196 expression and functions are largely unknown and warrant further investigation.