Homeobox B9 is overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinomas and promotes tumor cell proliferation both in vitro and in vivo.
HomeoboxB9 (HOXB9), a nontransforming transcription factor that is overexpressed in multiple tumor types, alters tumor cell fate and promotes tumor progression. However, the role of HOXB9 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development has not been well studied. In this paper, we found that HOXB9 is overexpressed in human HCC samples. We investigated HOXB9 expression and its prognostic value for HCC. HCC surgical tissue samples were taken from 89 HCC patients. HOXB9 overexpression was observed in 65.2% of the cases, and the survival analysis showed that the HOXB9 overexpression group had significantly shorter overall survival time than the HOXB9 downexpression group. The ectopic expression of HOXB9 stimulated the proliferation of HCC cells; whereas the knockdown of HOXB9 produced an opposite effect. HOXB9 also modulated the tumorigenicity of HCC cells in vivo. Moreover, we found that the activation of TGF-β1 contributes to HOXB9-induced proliferation activities. The results provide the first evidence that HOXB9 is a critical regulator of tumor growth factor in HCC.
Department of General Surgery, Dalian Municipal Friendship Hospital, No. 8 Sanba Square, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China.
Fangyi
F
Li
Department of Laparoscopic Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, No. 193 Lianhe Street, Shahekou District, Dalian 116001, China. Electronic address: dlleidong@126.com.
Lei
L
Dong
Department of Pathology and Pathophysiology, Dalian Medical University, No. 9 Lvshunnan Road, Lvshunkou District, Dalian 116044, China.
Rong
R
Xing
Department of General Surgery, Dalian Municipal Friendship Hospital, No. 8 Sanba Square, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China.
Li
L
Wang
Department of General Surgery, Dalian Municipal Friendship Hospital, No. 8 Sanba Square, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China.
Fengming
F
Luan
Department of General Surgery, Dalian Municipal Friendship Hospital, No. 8 Sanba Square, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China.
Chenhui
C
Yao
Department of Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, No. 6 Jiefang Street, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China.
Xuening
X
Ji
Department of Emergency, Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, No. 6 Jiefang Street, Zhongshan District, Dalian 116001, China. Electronic address: dllizhibai@126.com.
Lizhi
L
Bai
D000818:Animals; D015153:Blotting, Western; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D002460:Cell Line; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D034622:RNA Interference; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000378:metabolism; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays / Q000379:methods
C491257:HOXB9 protein, human; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1
Hepatocellular carcinomas; HomeoboxB9; Proliferation; TGF-β1