Fat mass and obesity-associated protein promotes the tumorigenesis and development of liver cancer

Ye,Ziqi; Wang,Shibing; Chen,Wanyuan; Zhang,Xin; Chen,Jie; Jiang,Jinying; Wang,Mingshan; Zhang,Li; Xuan,Zixue

doi:10.3892/ol.2020.11673

Fat mass and obesity-associated protein promotes the tumorigenesis and development of liver cancer

Authors:
- Ziqi Ye
- Shibing Wang
- Wanyuan Chen
- Xin Zhang
- Jie Chen
- Jinying Jiang
- Mingshan Wang
- Li Zhang
- Zixue Xuan
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Affiliations: Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310003, P.R. China, Key Laboratory of Tumor Molecular Diagnosis and Individualized Medicine of Zhejiang Province and Clinical Research Institute, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, P.R. China , Department of Pathology, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, People's Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, P.R. China , Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310009, P.R. China , Department of Pharmacy, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, People's Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, P.R. China , Department of Infection Diseases, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, People's Hospital of Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310014, P.R. China , Department of Emergency Medicine, The Central Hospital of Lishui, Lishui, Zhejiang 323000, P.R. China
Published online on: May 25, 2020 https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2020.11673
Pages: 1409-1417
Copyright: © Ye et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Liver cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer‑associated mortality worldwide. Statistics indicate that the incidence of liver cancer has been increasing and that its prognosis remains poor. Fat mass and obesity‑associated protein (FTO) is a demethylase that is involved in N6‑methyladenosine (m6a) RNA modification; however, to the best of our knowledge, its role in tumorigenesis and development of liver cancer remains unknown. In the present study, cell proliferation, colony formation, apoptosis, Transwell and wound healing assays of small interfering (si)RNA‑FTO HepG2 cells were performed, and the levels of m6A RNA methylation were assessed. Additionally, the prognostic value of FTO in liver cancer was analyzed using immunohistochemistry analysis. The results from the EpiQuik m6A RNA methylation quantitative assay revealed that knockdown of FTO increased the total m6A methylation level. Notably, FTO promoted the proliferation and migration of liver cancer cells. Additionally, FTO expression was upregulated in patients with liver cancer and was associated with a high Edmondson Grade, which served as an independent prognostic factor for liver cancer. Results from the Kaplan‑Meier survival analysis revealed that low expression levels of FTO predicted a good prognosis. The 5‑year overall survival of the low FTO expression group was 68% compared with 48% in the high FTO expression group (P=0.077). In conclusion, the present study suggested that FTO regulates the tumorigenesis and development of liver cancer.

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