siRNA targeting survivin inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in human renal clear cell carcinoma 786-O cells.

We investigated the inhibitory effect of small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting survivin gene on cell proliferation and apoptosis in human renal clear cell carcinoma 786-O cells. qRT-PCR, immunocytochemistry, and Western Blot were used to detect Survivin gene expression in 786-O cells. Cell proliferation was determined by BrdU assay and PCNA expression. Cell apoptosis was analyzed through detection of caspase-3 activity, and the effect of survivin-siRNA on Bcl-2 gene expression was also examined. Forty-eight hours after transfection, survivin expression was markedly inhibited at the mRNA and protein level. Downregulation of survivin resulted in a significant inhibition of tumor cell growth. Caspase-3 activity showed that siRNA targeting survivin gene induced cell apoptosis in 786-O cells. Moreover, Bcl-2 protein expression was markedly inhibited by transfection with siRNA against survivin. These results indicate that siRNA targeting survivin gene can downregulate survivin gene expression in 786-O cells, inhibit growth, and induce apoptosis of renal carcinoma cells.