Role of SATB1 in invasion and metastasis of human laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma cell line Hep-2 and its mechanisms

Abstract

Objective To investigate the role of special AT-rich sequence-binding protein 1 (SATB1) in invasion and metastasis of human laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma cell line Hep-2 and its mechanism. Methods Hep-2 cells were cultured in vitro. The cell lines were divided into two groups. The cells in the experimental group was transfected with Lipofectamine 2000 liposome for SATB1 small interfering RNA (SATB1-siRNA), and the cells in the control group was transfected with Lipofectamine 2000 liposome for NC-siRNA. The before and after transfection SATB1, E-cadherin and Snail genes relative expression levels between the two groups were detected and compared using RT-PCR. Transwell cell invasion experiments were applied to evaluate the cells invasive ability of the two groups. The scratch experiments were applied to evaluate the 48 h cell migration ability of the two groups. Results The differences in the relative expression level of SATB1, E-cadherin and Snail genes in pre-transfected laryngeal squamous cell line Hep-2 between the two groups were not statistically significant (all P>0.05). Compared with the control group, the relative expression levels of the mRNA of SATB1 and Snail genes decreased in the experimental group after transfection, while the relative expression levels of the mRNA of E-cadherin gene increased, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). After the transfection, the number of transwell membrane cells and cell migration distances of the two groups of cells decreased. The values of cell number and migration distance in the experimental group were lower than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusions SATB1 can promote the invasion and metastasis of Hep-2 cells, and its mechanism may be related to the down-regulation of E-cadherin and the up-regulation of Snail gene expression to induce epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Key words: Laryngeal neoplasms; Carcinoma, squamous cell; Neoplasm invasiveness; Neoplasm metastasis; Special AT-rich sequence-binding protein 1