Expression of CDK9 in endometrial cancer tissues and its effect on the proliferation of HEC-1B

Wen Yang; Shaoyan Liu; Qiuping Luo; Xuexian Tan

doi:10.1515/biol-2021-0136

Expression of CDK9 in endometrial cancer tissues and its effect on the proliferation of HEC-1B

Open Life Sci. 2021 Dec 31;16(1):1341-1346. doi: 10.1515/biol-2021-0136. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Wen Yang^{1

2}, Shaoyan Liu^{1

2}, Qiuping Luo^{1

2}, Xuexian Tan^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pathology, The Third Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, 510150 Guangzhou, China.
² Key Laboratory for Major Obstetric Diseases of Guangdong Province, The Third Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, 510150 Guangzhou, China.

Abstract

Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the most common malignant tumors in the female reproductive system, which has been threatening the life and health of many women. Its incidence and mortality rate remain high, resulting in a low survival rate. In this study, the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase 9 (CDK9) in EC tissues was investigated, and its effect on the proliferation of EC cell line HEC-1B was preliminarily analyzed. RT-qPCR and Western blotting showed that CDK9 mRNA and protein were significantly reduced in the small interfering (si)RNA interference group compared with the siRNA control and blank control groups. MTT assay showed that the EC cell proliferative ability was significantly decreased, and phosphorylated-phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (p-PI3K)/PI3K and phosphorylated-protein kinase B (p-AKT)/AKT were significantly reduced in the siRNA interference group compared with the siRNA control and blank control groups. In conclusion, the high expression of CDK9 is a factor of poor prognosis in EC, and the reduction of CDK9 can inhibit HEC-1B cell proliferation, which may be related to the inhibition on the activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Keywords: CDK9; cell proliferation; clinicopathology; endometrial cancer; the prognosis.