Effect of endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor on the proliferation and apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effect of endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor( EG-VEGF) on the proliferation and apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells and on the regulation of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Methords The expression of EG-VEGF and its receptor —VEGFR-2 in pancreatic cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues was detected by PCR. The effect of EG-VEGF on proliferation of human pancreatic cancer cells was detected by MTT assay. The effect of EG-VEGF on the apoptosis of human pancreatic cancer cells was detected by flow cytometry. Western lot was used to detect the changes of related proteins expression in PI3K/AKT signaling pathway after EG-VEGF treatment. Results The expression (3.08±0.30, 2.17±0.16 respectively) of EG-VEGF and VEGFR-2 in pancreatic cancer tissues was significantly higher than those (1.55±0.73, 0.54±0.34 respectively )in adjacent tissues (both P<0.05). MTT and flow cytometry data showed that EG-VEGF could promote the proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells and inhibit cell apoptosis. Western blot showed that EG-VEGF promoted AKT phosphorylation and activated PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Conclusion EG-VEGF is highly expressed in pancreatic cancer tissue, and can activate PI3K/AKT signaling pathway to promote cell proliferation and inhibit cell apoptosis. Key words: Pancreatic neoplasms; EG-VEGF; Proliferation; Apoptosis; Signal transduction