Open AccessRole of transcription factor FOXA1 in non‑small cell lung cancer
Author(s) -
Jia Li,
Shirong Zhang,
Lucheng Zhu,
Shenglin Ma
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
molecular medicine reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.727
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1791-3004
pISSN - 1791-2997
DOI - 10.3892/mmr.2017.7885
Subject(s) - foxa1 , cell cycle , oncogene , cancer research , transfection , a549 cell , biology , small interfering rna , lung cancer , transcription factor , cell , reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction , cell culture , pathology , messenger rna , medicine , gene , genetics
In our previous study, stable subpopulations of the A549 lung cancer cell line with high/low invasive potential (H/L‑INV) were obtained. In the present study, microarray analysis of the H/L‑INV A549 subpopulations was performed to evaluate genes associated with high invasiveness. Forkhead box protein A1 (FOXA1) was selected for further investigation. The expression levels of FOXA1 in the primary lesion and metastatic lymph nodes were assessed using reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT‑qPCR) analysis. In addition, the mRNA and protein expression levels of FOXA1 were examined in H‑INV A549 cells transfected with a specific FOXA1 small interfering RNA (siRNA), and the role of FOXA1 in the proliferation, invasion and metastasis of non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells was evaluated. FOXA1 was overexpressed in metastatic lymph nodes, compared with its expression in NSCLC primary tumours. The results of western blot and RT‑qPCR analyses confirmed that FOXA1 siRNA transfection led to a decrease in the expression of FOXA1 in H‑INV A549 cells. FOXA1 siRNA transfection caused G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest, and also reduced the invasion, migration and proliferation abilities of the H‑INV A549 cells. In conclusion, the results of the present study suggested that FOXA1 is a potential oncogene in NSCLC; therefore, specific interference of the expression of FOXA1 may represent a novel approach for the treatment of NSCLC.