Abstract
Colon cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays an important role in tumor metastasis of colon cancer. We first evaluated the effects of EMT-related transcription factors on the prognosis of colon cancer through analysis the data obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). And then we screened a series of Chinese medicine monomers to find effect EMT inhibitors. First, Snail is a more important EMT transcription factors for colon cancer prognosis, compared with Twist and Slug. Then, we found that apigenin effectively inhibits the activity of Snail. Apigenin could inhibit the EMT, migration, and invasion of human colon cancer cells in vitro and in vivo through the NF-κB/Snail pathway. Snail is a key regulator of EMT in colon cancer and Snail inhibitor apigenin may be a therapeutic application for patients with colon cancer.
Highlights
Colon cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide
The expression of both nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and Snail decreased in the cytosol and nucleus. These results showed that apigenin could inhibit epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of colon cancer cells through NF-κB/Snail pathway
The phenotype of EMT is mainly embodied in the cell–cell adhesion systems down-regulation, loss of epithelial polarity, and the acquisition of a mesenchymal phenotype, which lead to migration and movement of epithelial cells [12]
Summary
Colon cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. This disease is usually diagnosed at its advanced stage [1]. Colon metastases readily develop through the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of epithelial cells, a key process that supports tumor metastasis. In the process of EMT, epithelial cells lose their typical epithelial characteristics and acquire mesenchymal traits. Cancer cells lose their cell–cell connection, cell-matrix contact, and normal epithelial polarity while gaining mesenchymal characteristics, which enhance the migratory and invasive ability of cancer cells. EMT is an integral component of colorectal cancer progression. Targetting EMT will be beneficial for prognosis and therapy of colorectal cancer [2,3]
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