Cofilin-2 Acts as a Marker for Predicting Radiotherapy Response and Is a Potential Therapeutic Target in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
Bin-Bin Yu, Guo-Xiang Lin, Ling Li, Song Qu, Zhong-Guo Liang, Kai-Hua Chen, Lei Zhou, Qi-Teng Lu, Yong-Chu Sun, Xiao-Dong Zhu
Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Guangxi Medical University and Cancer Institute of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Nanning, Guangxi, China (mainland)
Med Sci Monit 2018; 24: LBR2317-2329
DOI: 10.12659/MSM.909832
Available online:
Published: 2018-04-17
BACKGROUND:
The purpose of this study was to determine whether cofilin-2 could serve as a protein marker for predicting radiotherapy response and as a potential therapeutic target in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).
MATERIAL AND METHODS:
Cofilin-2 protein levels in serum and tissue samples from patients with NPC were assessed by sandwich ELISA and IHC. In vitro, cofilin-2 levels in CNE-2R cells were significantly higher than those of CNE-2 cells. Meanwhile, CNE-2R cells were silenced for cofilin-2 to obtain a stable cofilin-2-RNAi-LV3 cell line. Then, cell proliferation, radiosensitivity, invasion and migration abilities, cell cycle, and apoptosis were evaluated by Cell Counting Kit 8 assay (CCK-8), flow cytometry (FCM), clone formation assay, and in vitro.
RESULTS:
The secreted levels of the cofilin-2 protein in radioresistant NPC patients were significantly higher than those of radiosensitive cases. After cofilin-2 knockdown in nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE-2R cells, proliferation was decreased, while apoptosis and radiosensitivity were enhanced; cell cycle distribution was altered, and the transplanted tumors in nude mice grew significantly less.
CONCLUSIONS:
Overall, our findings suggest that cofilin-2 acts as a marker for predicting radiotherapy response and is a potential therapeutic target in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
Keywords: Biological Markers, Cofilin 2, Gene Targeting, Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms, Radiation Oncology
