Abstract
Fibrinogen-like protein 1 (FGL1) is a proliferation- and metabolism-related factor secreted by the liver that is aberrantly expressed and functionally abnormal in human malignancies. However, the role of FGL1 in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remains unknown. We analysed FGL1 expression in HNSCC and its impact on patient survival using the TCGA database. The role of FGL1 in HNSCC cells was investigated by Cell Counting Kit-8, colony formation, and Transwell assays. In addition, we conducted in vivo experiments to assess the effect of FGL1 knockdown on tumour growth. We found that FGL1 was highly expressed in HNSCC and correlated with a poor prognosis. Downregulation of FGL1 expression inhibited the proliferation and invasion of HNSCC cells. Furthermore, mechanistic analysis revealed that FGL1 induced an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype and, thus, the malignant progression of HNSCC cells. Finally, xenograft models showed that FGL1 knockdown significantly inhibited EMT in HNSCC in vivo. Our study revealed that FGL1, an oncogene, promotes the malignant progression of HNSCC, providing new perspective on and potential therapeutic target for the treatment of HNSCC.
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The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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This study was funded by Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province (2021J011373).
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Zhiyong Pan and Linwei Mao and developed methods, interpreted results, and wrote the manuscript, Weiqun Hu revised the manuscript, Pingping Wang and Zhicong Zheng prepared Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and Enrun Lin and Jinqiao Huang prepared Table 1, and 2. All authors reviewed and approved the manuscript.
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Pan, Z., Hu, W., Huang, J. et al. Increased FGL1 Expression Predicts Poor Prognosis and Promotes EMT in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Biochem Genet (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10528-023-10545-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10528-023-10545-z