FANCD2 Confers a Malignant Phenotype in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma by Regulating Cell Cycle Progression.

Fanconi anemia patients with germline genetic defects in are highly susceptible to cancers. Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a deadly cancer. Little is known about the function of in ESCC. For detailed molecular and mechanistic insights on the functional role of in ESCC, in vivo and in vitro assays and RNA sequencing approaches were used. Utilizing Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat (CRISPR) technology, knockout models were established to examine the functional impact in mouse models for tumor growth and metastasis and in vitro assays for cell growth, cell cycle, and cellular localization. Our RNA sequence analyses were integrated with public datasets. confers a malignant phenotype in ESCC. is significantly upregulated in ESCC tumors, as compared to normal counterparts. Depletion of FANCD2 protein expression significantly suppresses the cancer cell proliferation and tumor colony formation and metastasis potential, as well as cell cycle progression, by involving cyclin-CDK and ATR/ATM signaling. FANCD2 translocates from the nucleus to the cytoplasm during cell cycle progression. We provide evidence of a novel role of in ESCC tumor progression and its potential usefulness as a biomarker for ESCC disease management.