Derlin-1 is overexpressed in human colon cancer and promotes cancer cell proliferation

• DOI: 10.1007/s11010-015-2496-x
• Publication Date: 2015-07-14T09:01:11Z
• Authors: Xueming Tan; Xiaolu He; Zhonghua Jiang; Xiaohong Wang; Limei Ma; Li Liu; Xiang Wang; Zhining Fan; Dongming Su
• Keywords: Membrane Proteins; Survival Analysis; Up-Regulation; 3. Good health; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Tissue Array Analysis; Cell Line, Tumor; Colonic Neoplasms; Humans; HT29 Cells; Cell Proliferation

Derlin-1 is overexpressed in many types of solid tumors and plays an important role in cancer progression. However, the expression pattern and functions of Derlin-1 in human colon cancer are not fully understood. In the present study, we examined Derlin-1 expression in colon cancer cell lines and human tissues and investigated its role in colon cancer. We found that Derlin-1 expression was increased significantly in colon cancer tissues and its overexpression correlated with the tumor differentiation, Dukes stage, invasion, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and poor overall survival. The silencing of Derlin-1 by shRNA led to the growth inhibition of colon cancer cells, which were associated with the promotion of apoptosis. Furthermore, Derlin-1 silencing significantly inhibited the activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Taken together, our results showed that Derlin-1 is overexpressed in colon cancer and promotes proliferation of colon cancer cells. Derlin-1 may be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of colon cancer.