BACKGROUND & AIMS: In this study, we investigated the role of salt-inducible kinase 1 (SIK1) and its possible mechanisms in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS

Immunoprecipitation, immunohistochemistry, luciferase reporter, Chromatin immunoprecipitation, in vitro kinase assays and a mouse model were used to examine the role of SIK1 on the β-catenin signaling pathway.

RESULTS

SIK1 was significantly downregulated in HCC compared with normal controls. Its introduction in HCC cells markedly suppresses epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), tumor growth and lung metastasis in xenograft tumor models. The effect of SIK1 on tumor development occurs at least partially through regulation of β-catenin, as evidenced by the fact that SIK1 overexpression leads to repression of β-catenin transcriptional activity, while SIK1 depletion has the opposite effect. Mechanistically, SIK1 phosphorylates the silencing mediator of retinoic acid and thyroid hormone receptor (SMRT) at threonine (T)1391, which promotes the association of nuclear receptor corepressor (NCoR)/SMRT with transducin-beta-like protein 1 (TBL1)/transducing-beta-like 1 X-linked receptor 1 (TBLR1) and disrupts the binding of β-catenin to the TBL1/TBLR1 complex, thereby inactivating the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. However, SMRT-T1391A reverses the phenotype of SIK1 and promotes β-catenin transactivation. Twist1 is identified as a critical factor downstream of SIK1/β-catenin axis, and Twist1 knockdown (Twist1(KD)) reverses SIK1(KD)-mediated changes, whereas SIK1(KD)/Twist1(KD) double knockdown cells were less efficient in establishing tumor growth and metastasis than SIK1(KD) cells. The promoter activity of SIK1 were negatively regulated by Twist1, indicating that a double-negative feedback loop exists. Importantly, levels of SIK1 inversely correlate with Twist1 expression in human HCC specimens.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings highlight the critical roles of SIK1 and its targets in the regulation of HCC development and provides potential new candidates for HCC therapy.