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CUGBP1 promotes cell proliferation and suppresses apoptosis via down-regulating C/EBPα in human non-small cell lung cancers

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Abstract

CUGBP1, which is involved in posttranscriptional regulatory networks, may control cell growth, activation and differentiation. Meanwhile, CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBPα) acts as a basic leucine zipper transcription factor which controls differentiation-dependent gene expression and inhibits cell proliferation. To date, very little is known about the association between CUGBP 1 and C/EBPα in regulating cell proliferation and apoptosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). CUGBP1 and C/EBPα mRNA expressions were analyzed in NSCLC tumor and adjacent normal tissues, and the relationship in clinicopathological parameters was evaluated. Knockdown of CUGBP1 and C/EBPα regulated by CUGBP1 in NSCLC cell line was identified by real-time PCR and Western blot. The effect of depletion of CUGBP1 was evaluated by MTT assay and Annexin/Propidium Iodide Apoptosis assay. CUGBP1 is highly expressed and expression of C/EBPα is low in NSCLC tissues. The correlation analysis revealed that there was negative correlation between the expression of CUGBP 1 and C/EBPα. Knockdown of CUGBP1 effectively silenced the expression of CUGBP1 and up-regulated C/EBPα. Also, suppression of CUGBP1 inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis in A549 cells. These observations suggest that the first proof the overexpression of CUGBP1 in NSCLC contributes to tumorigenesis through down-regulation of C/EBPα. Knockdown of CUGBP1 or up-regulation C/EBPα might be a potential therapeutic approach for human non-small cell lung cancers.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the department of Science & Technology of Shandong province (Contract No. 2012YD18042 and 2010GWZ20260). This work was supported, in part, by the Wu jieping medical Foundation of China (Contract No. 320.6753.1219 and 320.6750.13210).

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Ethics Committee of Qingdao University Medical College and written informed consent was obtained from all participants.

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No conflict of interest exits in the submission of this manuscript, and manuscript is approved by all authors for publication.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Oncology, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, 16 Jiangsu Road, Qingdao, 266003, Shandong, People’s Republic of China

      Haijiao Lu, Zhuang Yu & Xiaozheng Chen

    2. Department of Central Laboratory, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, 266003, Shandong, People’s Republic of China

      Shihai Liu & Ruyong Yao

    3. Department of Public Health, Qingdao University Medical College, No. 38 Dengzhou Road, Qingdao, 266021, Shandong, People’s Republic of China

      Lianhua Cui

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    Correspondence to Zhuang Yu.

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    Haijiao Lu and Zhuang Yu have contributed equally to this work and should be considered co-first authors.

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    Lu, H., Yu, Z., Liu, S. et al. CUGBP1 promotes cell proliferation and suppresses apoptosis via down-regulating C/EBPα in human non-small cell lung cancers. Med Oncol 32, 82 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-015-0544-8

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