Objective: To investigate the effect of Hedgehog (HH) pathway on proliferation and in vitro tumorigenicity of gastric cancer cell lines.
Methods: The expression of SHH, PTCH, SMO, SUFU and GLI1 in seven cell lines were tested by RT-PCR. siRNA targeting GLI1 mRNA was transfected into MKN28 cells. Cell proliferation and in vitro tumorigenicity were examined by CCK8 and soft agar colony formation test.
Results: SHH in six gastric cancer cell lines was up-regulated. Expression of PTCH in KATOIII cell lines and expression of SUFU in MKN28 and KATOIII were reduced. GLI1 siRNA significantly inhibited the expression of GLI1 in MKN28 cell line. Growth rate and colony formation rate of MKN28 cells treated with GLI1 siRNA were significantly lower than those of control cells (all P <0.001).
Conclusions: HH signaling pathway is widely activated in gastric cancer cell lines. The activation of HH signaling pathway promotes the growth of MKN28 cells.