USP7 promotes hepatoblastoma progression through activation PI3K/AKT signaling pathway

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Mujie Ye ◽  
Jiajun He ◽  
Jingjing Zhang ◽  
Baihui Liu ◽  
Xiangqi Liu ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is an embryonic solid tumor and the most common primary malignant liver tumor in children. HB usually occurs in infants and children. Although treatment diversity is increasing, some patients still have very poor prognosis. Many studies have investigated USP7 inhibitors for tumors. Using database information, we found that USP7 is highly expressed in HB. METHODS: Lentivirus-mediated USP7 knockdown and overexpression was performed in HB cell lines HepG2 and Huh6. CCK8 and transwell assays were used to determine cell viability and metastasis. Flow cytometry was used to study cell cycle and apoptosis. Levels of proteins were detected using western blots. RESULTS: Downregulation of USP7 resulted in significant decrease in cell proliferation, clonal formation, and cell migration and invasion. With overexpression of USP7, cellular malignant behavior increased. Cell cycle assays showed that USP7 knockdown inhibited G1 to S phase transition in the cell cycle. Upregulation of USP7 promoted the transition. Animal experiments showed USP7 facilitated tumor growth in vivo. Western blots indicated that USP7 may affect HB tumorigenesis through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Furthermore, USP7 inhibitor P5091 inhibited HB development and PI3K/AKT pathway. CONCLUSION: USP7 upregulation contributed to HB genesis and development through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. USP7 could be a potential target for future HB treatment.

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongyong Yang ◽  
Yanqing Wang ◽  
Yajing Zheng ◽  
Fangfang Dai ◽  
Shiyi Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common hormonal disorder among reproductive-aged women worldwide, however, the mechanisms and progression of PCOS still unclear due to its heterogeneous nature. Using the human granulosa-like tumor cell line (KGN) and PCOS mice model, we explored the function of lncRNA UCA1 in the pathological progression of PCOS. Results CCK8 assay and Flow cytometry were used to do the cell cycle, apoptosis and proliferation analysis, the results showed that UCA1 knockdown in KGN cells inhibited cell proliferation by blocking cell cycle progression and promoted cell apoptosis. In the in vivo experiment, the ovary of PCOS mice was injected with lentivirus carrying sh-UCA1, the results showed that knockdown of lncRNA UCA1 attenuated the ovary structural damage, increased the number of granular cells, inhibited serum insulin and testosterone release, and reduced the pro-inflammatory cytokine production. Western blot also revealed that UCA1 knockdown in PCOS mice repressed AKT activation, inhibitor experiment demonstrated that suppression of AKT signaling pathway, inhibited the cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. Conclusions Our study revealed that, in vitro, UCA1 knockdown influenced the apoptosis and proliferation of KGN cells, in vivo, silencing of UCA1 regulated the ovary structural damage, serum insulin release, pro-inflammatory production, and AKT signaling pathway activation, suggesting lncRNA UCA1 plays an important role in the pathological progression of PCOS.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Limei Yan ◽  
Zeping He ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Ning Liu ◽  
Song Gao

Ovarian cancer is considered as one of the most fatal gynecologic malignancies. This work aimed to explore the effects and regulatory mechanism of Acyl-CoA medium-chain synthetase-3 (ACSM3, a subunit of CoA ligases) in ovarian cancer progression. As well as employing CCK-8 assay, clone formation assay, and cell cycle analysis were carried out to investigate cell proliferation ability. Wound healing assay and transwell assay were subsequently used to assess cell migration and invasion. Mice xenografts were then conducted to measure the effects of ACSM3 on tumor development in vivo. Our bioinformatics analysis suggested that the expression of ACSM3 was down-regulated in ovarian cancer tissues, and the low expression level of ACSM3 might related with poorer overall survival than high mRNA expression of ACSM3 in ovarian cancer patients. We artificially regulated the expression of ACSM3 to evaluate its effects on ovarian cancer malignant phenotypes. Our data revealed that the overexpression of ACSM3 inhibited cell proliferation, migration, and invasion of ovarian cancer cells. In contrast, the knock-down of ACSM3 received the opposite results. Our western blot results showed that the Integrin β1/AKT signaling pathway was negatively regulated by ACSM3 expression. Moreover, ACSM3 overexpression-induced suppression of cell migration and invasion activities were abolished by the overexpression of ITG β1 (Integrin β1). Additionally, the growth of ovarian cancer xenograft tumors was also repressed by the overexpression of ACSM3. And ACSM3 interference obtained the contrary effects in vivo. In summary, ACSM3 acts as a tumor suppressor gene and may be a potential therapeutic target of ovarian cancer.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zongxia Wang ◽  
Lizhou Jia ◽  
Yushu sun ◽  
Chunli Li ◽  
Lingli Zhang ◽  
...  

Trophoblast cell surface protein 2 (Trop2) is one of the cancer-related proteins that plays a vital role in biological aggressiveness and poor prognosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). The study of the Trop2 related network is helpful for us to understand the mechanism of tumorigenesis. However, the effects of the related proteins interacting with Trop2 in CRC remain unclear. Here, we found that coronin-like actin-binding protein 1C (CORO1C) could interact with Trop2 and the expression of CORO1C in CRC tissues was higher than that in paracarcinoma tissues. The expression of CORO1C was associated with histological type, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, AJCC stage, venous invasion, and perineural invasion. The correlation between CORO1C expression and clinical characteristics was analyzed demonstrating that high CORO1C expression in CRC patients were associated with poor prognosis. Furthermore, CORO1C knockdown could decrease the cell proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. The underlying mechanisms were predicted by bioinformatics analysis and verified by Western blotting. We found that PI3K/AKT signaling pathway was significantly inhibited by CORO1C knockdown and the tuomr-promoting role of CORO1C was leastwise partly mediated by PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Thus, CORO1C may be a valuable prognostic biomarker and drug target in CRC patients.


2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 1968-1982 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hongming Song ◽  
Tianqi Wu ◽  
Dan Xie ◽  
Dengfeng Li ◽  
Kaiyao Hua ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Dysregulated expression of WW domain-binding protein 2 (WBP2) is associated with poor prognosis in ER+ breast cancer patients. However, its role in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) has not been previously assessed. Therefore, we aimed to elucidate the functional mechanism of WBP2 in TNBC cells. Methods: qRT-PCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemical staining were used to evaluate WBP2 expression in TNBC patient tumors and cell lines. HCC1937 and MDA-MB-231 cells transiently transfected with WBP2 small interfering RNA (siRNA), miR-613 mimics, or miR-613 inhibitors were subject to assays for cell viability, apoptosis and cell cycle distribution. Co-immunoprecipitation, western blotting or qRT-PCR were employed to monitor changes in signaling pathway-related genes and proteins. Luciferase assays were performed to assess whether WBP2 is a direct target of miR-613. The effect of miR-613 on tumor growth was assessed in vivo using mouse xenograft models. Results: The expression of WBP2 was upregulated in TNBC tissues and cells. Expression of WBP2 was significantly correlated with Ki67 in TNBC patients. Knockdown of WBP2 inhibited cellular proliferation, promoted apoptosis, and induced cell cycle arrest of TNBC cells. miR-613 directly bound to the 3’-untranslated region (3’-UTR) of WBP2 and regulated the expression of WBP2. Moreover, miR-613 reduced the expression of WBP2 and suppressed tumor growth of TNBC cells in vivo. Knockdown of WBP2 inhibited YAP transcription and the EGFR/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in TNBC cells, and these effects were reversed by inhibition of miR-613. Conclusion: WBP2 overexpression is associated with the poor prognosis of TNBC patients and the miR-613-WBP2 axis represses TNBC cell growth by inactivating YAP-mediated gene expression and the EGFR/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.


2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Jian ◽  
Chun-Hua Xu ◽  
You-Ping Li ◽  
Bin Tang ◽  
She-Hao Xie ◽  
...  

AbstractmicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been found to affect various cancers, and expression of numerous miRNAs is revealed in glioma. However, the role of microRNA-30b-3p (miR-30b-3p) in glioma remains elusive. Therefore, the present study aims to explore the specific mechanism by which miR-30b-3p influence the development of glioma in relation to the AKT signaling pathway. First, glioma cell lines were collected with miR-30b-3p and reversion-inducing cysteine-rich protein with kazal motifs (RECK) expression measured. The functional role of miR-30b-3p and RECK in glioma was determined via gain- and loss-of-function approaches. Subsequently, the expression of invasion- and migration-related factors (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and the AKT signaling pathway-related factors (AKT, p-AKT and PI3K-p85) was detected. Moreover, in vivo experiments were also conducted to investigate how miR-30b-3p influences in vivo tumorigenesis. The results showed that miR-30b-3p was up-regulated and RECK was down-regulated in glioma. RECK was a target gene of miR-30b-3p. Decreased miR-30b-3p and overexpressed RECK led to decreased expression of MMP-2, MMP-9 and p-AKT. Overexpressed RECK and LY294002 could decrease p-AKT and PI3K-p85 expression accompanied with unchanged expression of total protein of AKT. Additionally, proliferation, migration and invasion of glioma cells and tumor formation in nude mice were repressed owing to reduced expression of miR-30b-3p or elevated expression of RECK. In summary, miR-30b-3p inhibition suppresses metastasis of glioma cells by inactivating the AKT signaling pathway via RECK up-regulation, providing a new target for glioma treatment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinbing Zhu ◽  
Rongnian Li ◽  
Chen Wang ◽  
Shuo Zhou ◽  
Yujia Fan ◽  
...  

The survival rate of breast cancer (BC) patients remains poor, thus the identification of safe and effective new drugs is crucial to improve therapeutic outcomes and overall survival. Pinocembrin (PCB), a pharmacologically active ingredient of Pinus heartwood, Eucalyptus, Euphorbia, Populus, and Sparattosperma leucanthum, has been widely applied for the treatment of various diseases and possesses anticancer activities. In vitro assays were performed to investigate the antiproliferation and antimetastasis activities of PCB in BC cells. A tumorigenesis assay with the use of murine BC models was performed to assess the antiproliferation activities of PCB in vivo. Moreover, the molecular mechanisms underlying the anticancer activities of PCB in BC cells were explored. The results showed that the anti-inhibitory and antiproliferation activities of PCB in BC might involve cell cycle (G2/M phase) arrest and apoptosis. PCB downregulated the expression levels of proteins involved in cell cycle progression and apoptosis, including cyclinB1, Cdc2, PARP1, Bcl-2, and survivin, and upregulated protein levels of cleaved PARP1, cleaved caspase3, cleaved caspase9, and BAX. In a murine subcutaneous tumor model, PCB suppressed the growth of MCF-7 cells in vivo. Low concentrations of PCB also significantly inhibited the migration and invasion abilities of BC cells. Mechanistically, PCB administration was correlated to suppression of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Inhibition of the proliferation of BC cells by PCB involved cell cycle (G2/M phase) arrest and apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. Low concentrations of PCB also significantly inhibited the migration and invasion abilities of BC cells. These findings suggest that PCB might be an effective agent for treatment of BC patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linwen Zhu ◽  
Zhe Li ◽  
Xiuchong Yu ◽  
Yao Ruan ◽  
Yijing Shen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Recently, tRNA-derived fragments (tRFs) have been shown to serve important biological functions. However, the role of tRFs in gastric cancer has not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to identify the tumor suppressor role of tRF-5026a (tRF-18-79MP9P04) in gastric cancer. Methods Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was first used to detect tRF-5026a expression levels in gastric cancer tissues and patient plasma. Next, the relationship between tRF-5026a levels and clinicopathological features in gastric cancer patients was assessed. Cell lines with varying tRF-5026a levels were assessed by measuring tRF-5026a using qRT-PCR. After transfecting cell lines with a tRF-5026a mimic or inhibitor, cell proliferation, colony formation, migration, apoptosis, and cell cycle were evaluated. The expression levels of related proteins in the PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway were also analyzed by Western blotting. Finally, the effect of tRF-5026a on tumor growth was tested using subcutaneous tumor models in nude mice. Results tRF-5026a was downregulated in gastric cancer patient tissues and plasma samples. tRF-5026a levels were closely related to tumor size, had a certain diagnostic value, and could be used to predict overall survival. tRF-5026a was also downregulated in gastric cancer cell lines. tRF-5026a inhibited the proliferation, migration, and cell cycle progression of gastric cancer cells by regulating the PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Animal experiments showed that upregulation of tRF-5026a effectively inhibited tumor growth. Conclusions tRF-5026a (tRF-18-79MP9P04) is a promising biomarker for gastric cancer diagnostics and has tumor suppressor effects mediated through the PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.


2003 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 610-620 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiro Umeda ◽  
Shigetoshi Sano ◽  
Kazuhiko Kogawa ◽  
Noboru Motoyama ◽  
Kunihiko Yoshikawa ◽  
...  

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