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RETRACTED ARTICLE: Downregulation of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibits migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma via Wnt/β-catenin pathway

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This article was retracted on 08 February 2024

A Correction to this article was published on 18 July 2020

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Abstract

Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) is an important methyltransferase involved in the biotransformation of many drugs and exogenous compounds. Abnormal expression of NNMT protein is closely associated with the onset and progression of many malignancies, but little is known about its role in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Therefore, we aimed to explore whether NNMT plays any roles in carcinogenesis and metastasis in ESCC. NNMT expression was determined by immunohistochemistry in ESCC and corresponding adjacent normal tissues. Functional experiments were performed to elucidate the effects of NNMT knockdown on the proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle, migration, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in EC9706 and TE1 cells. NNMT expression was significantly elevated in ESCC tissues compared with corresponding adjacent normal tissues. Moreover, a significant association emerged between NNMT expression and lymph node metastasis. SiRNA-mediated knockdown of NNMT in ESCC cells can significantly suppress cell viability and migration, induce cell cycle arrest, and promote cell apoptosis. In addition, NNMT downregulation led to the reversal of EMT, as reflected by upregulation of the intercellular adhesion molecule E-cadherin and downregulation of the mesenchymal markers N-cadherin and Vimentin. Further study found that NNMT knockdown suppressed the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Taken together, these findings indicate that NNMT is a critical regulator of EMT in ESCC and may be a potential therapeutic target for ESCC metastasis.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by Henan Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 182300410377), the Key Scientific Research Projects of Henan Higher Education institutions (Grant No. 17A180016), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 81272691).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Life Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, China

    Yanyan Cui, Luyu Zhang, Wenjie Wang, Shanshan Ma, Hongtao Liu, Yanting Zhang & Fangxia Guan

  2. Henan Provincial People’s Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450003, China

    Fangxia Guan

  3. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Ave, Bronx, New York, NY, 10461, USA

    Xingxing Zang

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  1. Yanyan Cui
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  2. Luyu Zhang
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  3. Wenjie Wang
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  5. Hongtao Liu
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  6. Xingxing Zang
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  7. Yanting Zhang
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Correspondence to Yanting Zhang or Fangxia Guan.

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This article has been retracted. Please see the retraction notice for more detail: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-024-04959-5"

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Cui, Y., Zhang, L., Wang, W. et al. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Downregulation of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase inhibits migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma via Wnt/β-catenin pathway. Mol Cell Biochem 460, 93–103 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-019-03573-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-019-03573-0

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