scholarly journals Nuclear FOXP3 inhibits tumor growth and induced apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma by targeting c-Myc

Oncogenesis ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhongqin Gong ◽  
Hao Jia ◽  
Jianqing Yu ◽  
Yi Liu ◽  
Jianwei Ren ◽  
...  

Abstract The status of FOXP3 and its isoforms in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear. We aimed to investigate the expression and function of FOXP3 and its isoforms in HCC. The study was performed on 84 HCC patients, HCC cell lines and a mouse tumor model. The levels of FOXP3 and its isoforms were determined by nested PCR, quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining. The correlation between their levels and clinicopathologic characteristics was analyzed. The full length of FOXP3 (FOXP3) and exon 3-deleted FOXP3 (FOXP3Δ3) were found to be the major isoforms in HCC. The levels of FOXP3Δ3 mRNA and protein in HCC tumor samples were not significantly different from their adjacent normal tissues. The high expression of FOXP3 protein in HCC patients showed a good overall survival. The overexpression of FOXP3 significantly reduced tumor cell proliferation, migration and invasion. The immunofluorescence result indicated that FOXP3 needed to be translocated into the nucleus to exert its inhibitory function. The luciferase assay demonstrated that FOXP3 could be synergistic with Smad2/3/4 to inhibit the oncogene c-Myc. The co-immunoprecipitation results further revealed that FOXP3 could interact with Smad2/3/4. The chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay showed that both FOXP3 and Smad2/3/4 bound the promoter of the c-Myc to inhibit it. The in vivo mouse tumor model study confirmed the inhibitory effect of FOXP3. Collectively, the expression of tumor FOXP3 can inhibit the growth of HCC via suppressing c-Myc directly or indirectly via interacting with Smad2/3/4. Therefore, FOXP3 is a tumor suppressor in HCC.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhongqin Gong ◽  
Hao Jia ◽  
Jianqing Yu ◽  
Yi Liu ◽  
Jianwei Ren ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The status of FOXP3 and its isoforms in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear. We aimed to investigate the expression and function of FOXP3 and its isoforms in HCC. Methods The study was performed on 84 HCC patients, HCC cell lines and a mouse tumor model. The levels of FOXP3 and its isoforms were determined by nested PCR, quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining. The correlation between their levels and clinicopathologic characteristics was analyzed. Results The full length of FOXP3 (FOXP3) and exon 3-deleted FOXP3 (FOXP3Δ3) were found to be the major isoforms in HCC. The levels of FOXP3Δ3 mRNA and protein in HCC tumor samples were not significantly different from their adjacent normal tissues. The high expression of FOXP3 protein in HCC patients showed a good overall survival. The overexpression of FOXP3 significantly reduced tumor cell proliferation, migration and invasion. The immunofluorescence result indicated that FOXP3 needed to be translocated into the nucleus to exert its inhibitory function. The luciferase assay demonstrated that FOXP3 could be synergistic with Smad2/3/4 to inhibit the oncogene c-Myc. The co-immunoprecipitation results further revealed that FOXP3 could interact with Smad2/3/4. The chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay showed that both FOXP3 and Smad2/3/4 bound the promoter of the c-Myc to inhibit it. The in vivo mouse tumor model study confirmed the inhibitory effect of FOXP3. Conclusion Collectively, the expression of tumor FOXP3 can inhibit the growth of HCC via suppressing c-Myc directly or indirectly via interacting with Smad2/3/4. Therefore, FOXP3 is a tumor suppressor in HCC.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qianqian Zhang ◽  
Xiaohong Deng ◽  
Xiuxin Tang ◽  
Ying You ◽  
Meihua Mei ◽  
...  

PurposeHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a worldwide leading cause of morbidity and mortality, is the most frequent primary liver tumor. Most HCC patients are diagnosed with advanced liver cancer, resulting in a very low 5-year survival rate. Thus, there is an urgent need for the development of targeted therapies. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect and mechanism of the miR-20a/EZH1 axis on the proliferation and metastasis of HCC and the inhibitory effect of the EZH1/EZH2 inhibitor UNC1999 on HCC.Materials and MethodsThe expression of miR-20a in human HCC tissues and cell lines was detected using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). The expressions of proteins were analyzed with immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. Luciferase assay was used to verify whether miR-20a targets EZH1 or EZH2. The effect of miR-20a on HCC progression was studied in vivo and in vitro. The tumor inhibitory effect of UNC1999 was confirmed in vivo. CCK8 assay, wound healing assay, cell migration and invasion assay were used to evaluate the synergistic effect of UNC1999 with sorafenib. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was performed to screen the differentially expressed genes in the Huh7 and SMMC7721 cell lines after UNC1999, sorafenib, and combination treatments.ResultsIn this study, miR-20a showed a lower expression in both HCC tissues and cell lines. MiR-20a inhibited the proliferation and migration of SMMC7721 and Huh7 cells. The results of the luciferase assay and Western blot analysis revealed that miR-20a directly targeted EZH1, a histone methyltransferase. We demonstrated that miR-20a negatively regulated the expression of EZH1 and inhibited the proliferation and metastasis of HCC by reducing H3K27 methylation. We found UNC1999 inhibited tumor cells proliferation and enhanced the inhibitory effect of sorafenib.ConclusionWe demonstrated that miR-20a suppresses the tumor proliferation and metastasis in HCC by directly targeting EZH1. UNC1999 can inhibit tumor proliferation in vivo and increase the sensitivity of hepatoma cell lines to sorafenib.


2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 255-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinjin Liu ◽  
Jun Rao ◽  
Xuming Lou ◽  
Jian Zhai ◽  
Zhenhua Ni ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: The tripartite motif containing (TRIM) family plays crucial roles in tumor development and progression. However, little is known about the function and mechanism of TRIM11 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: The expression levels of TRIM11 were examined by real-time PCR, Western blot and Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. TRIM11 knockdown cells were produced by lentivirus infection, and functional assays, such as MTT, colony formation assay, migration and invasion assays and a xenograft tumor model were used to investigate the role of TRIM11 in HCC. We also determined the effect of TRIM11 on p53 signaling and its downstream molecules. Results: We found that TRIM11 mRNA and protein levels were significantly increased in HCC tissues as compared with normal tissues; increased levels correlated with poor patient survival. By loss- and gain-of-function investigations, knockdown of TRIM11 suppressed cell proliferation, migration, invasion in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. Moreover, TRIM11 negatively regulated p53 expression. Knockdown of p53 abrogated the in vitro and in vivo biological functions of TRIM11 shRNA in HCC cells. Conclusions: These data show that TRIM11 exerts its oncogenic effect in HCC by downregulating p53 both in vitro and in vivo. Our data provide new insights into the pathogenesis of HCC and indicate that TRIM11 may serve as a new therapeutic target for HCC treatment.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mingyue Zhu ◽  
Haipeng Feng ◽  
Bo Lin ◽  
Ying Zhou ◽  
Yifeng Zheng ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Vincosamide(Vinco) was first identified in the methanolic extract of the leaves of Psychotria leiocarpa, and Vinco has important anti-inflammatory effects and activity against cholinesterase. However, whether Vinco inhibits the malignant behaviors of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) cells is still unclear. In the present study, we explored the role of Vinco in suppressing the malignant behaviors of HCC cells. Methods MTT and trypan blue exclusion assays were applied to detect the proliferation and death of HCC cells; electron microscopy was performed to observe change in cellular mitochondrial morphology; scratch repair and Transwell assays were used to analyze the migration and invasion of HCC cells; the expression and localization of proteins were detected by laser confocal microscopy and Western blotting; and the growth of the cancer cells in vivo was assessed in a mouse tumor model. Results At a dose of 10–80 µg/ml, Vinco inhibited the proliferation of HCC cells and promoted their apoptosis in a time- and dose-independent manner but had little effect on normal liver cells. Additionally, 80 µg/ml Vinco significantly disrupted the morphology of mitochondria and suppressed the migration and invasion of HCC cells. The growth of HCC cells in the animal tumor model was significantly inhibited after treatment with Vinco (10 mg/kg/day) for 3 days. The results of the present study indicate that Vinco (10–80 µg/ml) plays novel roles in activating caspase-3, promoting the expression of PTEN, and inhibiting the phosphorylation of AKT(Ser 473) and mTOR (Thr2448) and that Vinco was able to also suppress the expression of CXCR4, Src, MMP9, EpCAM, Ras and Oct4 in HCC cells. Conclusions Vinco plays a role in inhibiting the malignant behaviors of HCC cells, and the molecular mechanism may involve in suppressing the expression of the growth-, metastasis-related factors Src, Ras, MMP9, EpCAM and CXCR4 and activating the activity of caspase-3. Vinco also blocks the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Thus, Vinco is an available chemotherapy for HCC patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing-fang Wang ◽  
Qing-lin Wang ◽  
Ming-bo Cao

Background: Long non-coding RNAs are critical to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) developments. LncRNA PITPNA antisense RNA 1 (PITPNA-AS1) is a new regulator in several tumors. However, the mechanism by which PITPNA-AS1 mediates the tumorigenesis of HCC remains unclear.Methods: RT-qPCR was used to detect the level of PITPNA-AS1 in HCC specimens and cells. The biological functions of PITPNA-AS1 were explored by several functional experiments in vivo and in vitro. The binding relationship among PITPNA-AS1, miR-448 and ROCK1 were studied by Luciferase assay and pull-down assays.Results: We found that PITPNA-AS1 expressions were distinctly upregulated in both HCC specimens and cell lines. High PITPNA-AS1 levels were an unfavorable biomarker for patients with HCC. Functionally, knockdown of PITPNA-AS1 suppressed the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells. Mechanistically, PITPNA-AS1 functioned as competing endogenous RNA to increase ROCK1 expressions via sponging miR-448.Conclusion: The newly identified PITPNA-AS/miR-448/ROCK1 axis promoted the oncogenicity of HCC cells. This novel axis is likely to be a promising HCC therapeutic aim.


2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina V. Shirmanova ◽  
Irina V. Balalaeva ◽  
Marina A. Sirotkina ◽  
Natalya Yu. Lekanova ◽  
Ilya V. Turchin ◽  
...  

1998 ◽  
Vol 177 (3) ◽  
pp. 523-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory S. Pari ◽  
Dale Netski ◽  
Stephen St. Jeor ◽  
Donna McCarthy ◽  
Jean Smith ◽  
...  

2005 ◽  
Vol 102 (9) ◽  
pp. 3419-3422 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. J. Pickhardt ◽  
R. B. Halberg ◽  
A. J. Taylor ◽  
B. Y. Durkee ◽  
J. Fine ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nhat Quang Bui ◽  
Soon-Woo Cho ◽  
Madhappan Santha Moorthy ◽  
Sang Min Park ◽  
Zhonglie Piao ◽  
...  

2005 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
pp. 603-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed K. Khan ◽  
Shraddha S. Nigavekar ◽  
Leah D. Minc ◽  
Muhammed S. T. Kariapper ◽  
Bindu M. Nair ◽  
...  

Our results indicate that the surface chemistry, composition, and 3-D structure of nanoparticles are critical in determining their in vivo biodistribution, and therefore the efficacy of nanodevice imaging and therapies. We demonstrate that gold/dendrimer nanocomposites in vivo, present biodistribution characteristics different from PAMAM dendrimers in a B16 mouse tumor model system. We review important chemical and biologic uses of these nanodevices and discuss the potential of nanocomposite devices to greatly improve cancer imaging and therapy, in particular radiation therapy. We also discuss major issues confronting the use of nanoparticles in the near future, with consideration of toxicity analysis and whether biodegradable devices are needed or even desirable.


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