HIF-1α contributes to metastasis in choriocarcinoma by regulating DEC1 expression

• Yihui Xu ^[1] ; Bao Ren ^[2] ; Min Wang ^[1]
  1. [1] Medical Research & Laboratory Diagnostic Center, Central Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, China
  2. [2] Department of Acupuncture & Massage, Central Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, China
• Localización: Clinical & translational oncology, ISSN 1699-048X, Vol. 25, Nº. 6, 2023, págs. 1641-1649
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Purpose To elucidate the underlying mechanism of HIF-1α in migration and invasion of choriocarcinoma.

    Methods Cell proliferation was determined by CCK-8 assay when cell invasion was detected by transwell assay. The protein expression was detected by western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and qPCR assay.

    Result HIF-1α was shown to be strongly expressed in both clinical tumour tissues and cell lines in choriocarcinoma. When HIF-1α was efficiently knocked down in JEG3 cells, the proliferation rate was reduced by approximately 50% and the number of cells that migrated through the transwell insert was greatly decreased. The cell invasion rate was also significantly reduced. Moreover, typical markers of epithelial–mesenchymal transition such as E-cadherin, were increased, while vimentin and α–SMA were decreased after HIF-1α knockdown. In contrast, overexpression of DEC1 reversed the effects of HIF-1α knockdown. Cell proliferation, migration, and invasion were partially recovered. The level of E-cadherin was decreased, while the level of vimentin and α–SMA was increased. In addition, the level of β-catenin and LEF1 was downregulated after HIF-1α knockdown. The expression of MMP2 and MMP9 also declined. However, overexpression of DEC1 after HIF-1α knockdown partially reversed the expression pattern of these molecules.

    Conclusion HIF-1α contributed to EMT and metastasis through activation of canonical β-catenin signalling in choriocarcinoma and this process was dependent on DEC1. This study provides a new mechanism of HIF-1α in choriocarcinoma and suggests that intervention with DEC1 might be a promising therapeutic choice for choriocarcinoma.