Abstract: Objective To study the expression of miR-454-3p in colon cancer and its effect on colon cancer proliferation, invasion and hepatic metastasis. Methods Specimens of tumor tissues and paired adjacent tissues were collected from 20 patients with colorectal cancer for detecting the expression levels of miR-454-3p using in situ hybridization. Colon cancer cell line SW480 was transfected with a lentiviral vector to induce miR-454-3p over-expression, and the changes in cell proliferation and invasion were observed using cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), clone formation assay and Transwell experiment. The effect of miR- 454-3p over-expression on hepatic metastasis of colon cancer was assessed in BALB/c mouse models. Results The results of in situ hybridization showed a significantly increased expression level of miR-454-3p in colon cancer tissues as compared with normal colon tissues (P<0.05). In SW480 cells, over-expression of miR-454-3p significantly promoted the cell proliferation and invasion (P<0.05). In BALB/c mice, SW480 cells over-expressing miR-454-3p showed a significantly higher potential for liver metastases than the control cells (P<0.05). Conclusion miR-454-3p is overexpressed in the tumor tissues in patients with colorectal cancer and participates in the progression of colorectal cancer by promoting cancer cell proliferation, invasion, and liver metastasis. miR-454-3p may serve as a novel biomarker for colorectal cancer diagnosis and prognostic evaluation.