Tumor metastasis is a major cause of death of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). Our previous findings show that adenine has antiproliferation activity against tumor cells. However, whether adenine reduces the invasiveness of DLD-1 and SW480 CRC cells has not been thoroughly explored. In this study, we aimed to explore the effects of adenine on the invasion potential of DLD-1 cells. Our findings showed that adenine at concentrations of ≤200 μM did not influence the cell viability of DLD-1 and SW480 CRC cells. By contrast, adenine reduced the migratory potential of the CRC cells. Moreover, it decreased the invasion capacity of the CRC cells in a dose-dependent manner. We further observed that adenine downregulated the protein levels of tissue plasminogen activator, matrix metalloproteinase-9, Snail, TWIST, and vimentin, but upregulated the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 expression in DLD-1 cells. Adenine decreased the integrin αV level and reduced the activation of integrin-associated signaling components, including focal adhesion kinase (FAK), paxillin, and Src in DLD-1 cells. Further observations showed that adenine induced AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation and inhibited mTOR phosphorylation in DLD-1 cells. The knockdown of AMPK restored the reduced integrin αV level and FAK/paxillin/Src signaling inhibited by adenine in DLD-1 cells. Collectively, these findings reveal that adenine reduces the invasion potential of DLD-1 cells through the AMPK/integrin/FAK axis, suggesting that adenine may have anti-metastatic potential in CRC cells.
Keywords: AMP-activated protein kinase; adenine; colorectal cancer cell; focal adhesion kinase; invasion.