title: Identification of C1qTNF-related protein 4 as a potential cytokine that stimulates the STAT3 and NF-κB pathways and promotes cell survival in human cancer cells.
abstract: The NF-κB and IL6/STAT3 pathways are major participants in tumor-promoting inflammation. C1qTNF related protein (CTRP) is a family with multiple physiological functions, but their involvement in tumor-promoting inflammation has received little attention. For the first time, we have identified CTRP4 as a novel secretary protein by N-terminal sequencing. Moreover, recombinant CTRP4 can effectively induce the activation of both NF-κB and IL6/STAT3 signaling pathways in the pattern similar to that of classical cytokine. By western blot analysis, we detected the upregulation of CTRP4 in response to IL6. Importantly, functional research revealed that CTRP4 could promote tumor cell survival and tumor resistance against apoptosis induced by chemotherapeutics. These results strongly suggest that CTRP4 is a novel tumor-promoting inflammatory regulator. Our findings might provide a meaningful indication for cancer research.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Medical Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, PR China.
authors.forename: Qi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Lanlan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Weifeng
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Zhi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Yingmei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Guoying
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Daxiang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Na
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.forename: Taiping
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Dalong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D016207:Cytokines / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D019073:HT29 Cells; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: C560750:C1QTNF4 protein, human; D016207:Cytokines; D016328:NF-kappa B; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor