Abstract
RUFY3 (RUN and FYVE domain-containing protein 3) has been demonstrated to exhibit carcinogenic effect in multiple malignancies. However, the exact role of RUFY3 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression remains elusive. Herein, we aimed to identify the role and the underlying mechanism of RUFY3 in HCC progression. The RUFY3 levels in HCC specimens were detected by qRT-PCR, western blot, and immunohistochemistry, and its clinical significance in HCC patients was assessed. The effect of RUFY3 on HCC cell growth, migration, and invasion was explored by CCK-8 assay, wound healing assay, and transwell migration and invasion assays in vitro. The effect of RUFY3 on HCC cell growth and metastasis was also conducted in vivo through establishing xenograft tumor and lung metastatic mice model. The underlying mechanism responsible for RUFY3-induced HCC cell behavior was also investigated. Our results indicated that high levels of RUFY3 significantly correlated with tumor size, microvascular invasion, clinical stage, and poor prognosis for HCC patients. In addition, RUFY3 facilitated HCC cell growth, invasion, and metastasis both in vitro and in vivo through activating nuclear factor-κ-gene binding (NF-κB)-mediated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Taken together, our results revealed that RUFY3 accelerated HCC progression via driving NF-κB-mediated EMT, suggesting a novel target for HCC treatment.
Highlights
Worldwide, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant tumors [1]
Great progress has been made in treatment and research, tumor recurrence and metastasis are the main obstacles in the treatment of patients with HCC [13, 14]
Given that many gene changes are related to the growth, invasion and metastasis of cancer cell [15], it is very meaningful of searching for key molecular targets and the molecular mechanisms underlying HCC progression
Summary
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant tumors [1]. Great progress has been made in the treatment of liver cancer in recent decades [2], the 5-year overall survival rate is still very low due to recurrence and metastasis [3]. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays an important role in tumorigenesis and development. In the EMT process, epithelial cells lose their epithelial properties and acquire a more aggressive (mesenchymal) phenotype, undergoing a series of substantially intricate biological and biochemical changes to promote motility and invasion [4]. EMT involves down-regulation of E-cadherin and up-regulation of N-cadherin. These changes in cell behavior and differentiation are regulated by key transcription factors and an intricate network of signaling pathways, including TGF-β, PI3K/Akt, Hippo, MAPK, and NF-κB [5,6,7]
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