title: Interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) is a trigger for tumorigenesis and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma.
abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide with poor prognosis. IFN-stimulated genes 15 (ISG15) is an ubiquitin-like molecule that is strongly upregulated by type I interferons as a primary response to diverse microbial and cellular stress stimuli. However, the role of ISG15 in HCC remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the function of ISG15 during HCC progression and related mechanism using clinicopathological data, cell line and xenograft model. Our results indicated that ISG15 is highly expressed in HCC tissues and multiple HCC cell lines. ISG15 expression is significantly associated with the differentiation grade, metastatic of tumor and survival of HCC patients. However, the expression of ISG15 is not affected by HBV infection. ISG15 promotes the proliferation and migration of hepatocarcinoma cells through maintaining Survivin protein stabilization via sequestering XIAP from interacting with Survivin. Knowing down ISG15 with SiRNA inhibited the xenografted tumor growth and prolonged the lifespan of tumor-bearing mice. All these results support that ISG15 high expression is an intrinsic feature for HCC and a trigger for tumorigenesis and metastasis. ISG15 may be a prognostic biomarker and the inhibition of ISG15 could provide a therapeutic advantage for HCC patients over-expressing ISG15.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China. CAS Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Chong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Ji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Mingao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Feifei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Yufeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Hudan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002465:Cell Movement; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D016207:Cytokines / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D059565:G2 Phase Cell Cycle Checkpoints; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D006801:Humans; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008819:Mice, Nude; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D034622:RNA Interference; D015398:Signal Transduction; D000077022:Survivin; D013997:Time Factors; D014162:Transfection; D047368:Tumor Burden; D014452:Ubiquitins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051636:X-Linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C107489:BIRC5 protein, human; D016207:Cytokines; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins; D000077022:Survivin; D014452:Ubiquitins; D051636:X-Linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein; C496866:XIAP protein, human; C074034:ISG15 protein, human