Wnt/β‑catenin signaling pathway may regulate the expression of angiogenic growth factors in hepatocellular carcinoma

Qu,Bo; Liu,Bing‑Rong; Du,Ya‑Ju; Chen,Jing; Cheng,Yan‑Qiu; Xu,Wei; Wang,Xin‑Hong

doi:10.3892/ol.2014.1828

Wnt/β‑catenin signaling pathway may regulate the expression of angiogenic growth factors in hepatocellular carcinoma

Authors:
- Bo Qu
- Bing‑Rong Liu
- Ya‑Ju Du
- Jing Chen
- Yan‑Qiu Cheng
- Wei Xu
- Xin‑Hong Wang
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Affiliations: Department of Gastroenterology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150086, P.R. China
Published online on: January 27, 2014 https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2014.1828
Pages: 1175-1178

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Abstract

The Wnt̸β‑catenin signaling pathway plays a key role during hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) genesis and development. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of the Wnt̸β‑catenin signaling pathway on the expression of angiogenic growth factors involved in HCC. The HCC HepG2 cell line was transfected with small interfering RNA (siRNA) against β‑catenin. After 72 and 96 h, protein was extracted and the expression levels of β‑catenin, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)‑2, MMP‑9, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)‑A, VEGF‑C and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) were detected by western blot analysis. β‑catenin protein expression was inhibited at both time points. Notably, MMP‑2, MMP‑9, VEGF‑A, VEGF‑C and bFGF protein expression levels decreased at 72 h and then increased at 96 h after transfection. Our results demonstrated that in HCC cells, the Wnt̸β‑catenin signaling pathway may regulate the protein expression of the angiogenic factors, MMP‑2, MMP‑9, VEGF‑A, VEGF‑C and bFGF. These proteins were downstream of β‑catenin signaling and were also regulated by other factors. In conclusion, the Wnt̸β‑catenin signaling pathway may contribute to the regulation of HCC angiogenesis, infiltration and metastasis through regulating the expression of these angiogenic factors.

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