SOX4 mediates TGF-β1 induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition to promote invasion and metastasis of ovarian cancer

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1006-7795.2022.03.002

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression and regulation of SOX4 (SRY-related HMG-box4) in ovarian cancer and its effect on transforming growth factor-β1(TGF-β1) induction of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Methods The mRNA expression profile of ovarian cancer sample from TCGA, GEO databases were analyzed to assess the expression of SOX4 and its correlation with EMT markers in ovarian cancer; The expression of SOX4 in ovarian cancer SKOV3 cell line was knocked down by shRNA technology. Western blotting and qRT-PCR were used to detect the effects of SOX4 knockdown on epithelial marker ZO1 and mesenchymal markers Vimentin and Slug. Transwell technique was used to detect the effect of SOX4 knockdown on the migration and invasion abilities of ovarian cancer cells. To detect the regulation of TGF-β1 on SOX4 and the effect of SOX4 knockdown on TGF-β1 induced EMT, SKOV3 cells were treated with 10 ng/mL TGF-β1 for 72 h, followed by Western blotting and qRT-PCR assays. Results SOX4 expression was significantly up-regulated in ovarian cancer, and positively correlated with expression of mesenchymal markers. Deletion of SOX4 significantly suppressed EMT and thus inhibited migration and invasion of SKOV3 cells. SOX4 was induced by TGF-β1, and SOX4 knockdown significantly inhibited the ability of TGF-β1 to induce EMT in ovarian cancer. Conclusion Upregulation of SOX4 promoted migration and invasion in ovarian cancer by activating EMT. Moreover, as a downstream target of TGF-β1, SOX4 mediated TGF-β1-induced EMT in ovarian cancer.

Key words: ovarian cancer, metastasis, SOX4, transforming growth factor-β1(TGF-β1), epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)

CLC Number:

R737.31

Liu Qun, Li Lina, Liu Jian, Miao Jinwei. SOX4 mediates TGF-β1 induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition to promote invasion and metastasis of ovarian cancer[J]. Journal of Capital Medical University, 2022, 43(3): 336-342.

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URL: https://journal03.magtech.org.cn/Jweb_sdykdxxb/EN/10.3969/j.issn.1006-7795.2022.03.002

https://journal03.magtech.org.cn/Jweb_sdykdxxb/EN/Y2022/V43/I3/336

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