Zingerone suppresses proliferation, invasion, and migration of hepatocellular carcinoma cells by the inhibition of MTDH-mediated PI3K/Akt pathway.

PURPOSE

Previous studies have proved that zingerone was a therapeutic agent for many tumors. Metadherin () acts as an oncogene and is involved in tumorigenesis. The purpose of this study was to explore the underlying mechanism of zingerone that regulates to affect hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression.

METHODS

CCK-8 assay was performed to detect HCC cell proliferation. The invasion and migration abilities of HCC cells were evaluated using Transwell assay. The mRNA and protein levels in cells and tissues were measured using qRT-PCR and Western blot assays. Moreover, we established the HCC xenografts nude mice to evaluate the effect of zingerone on tumor growth.

RESULTS

We found that zingerone treatment significantly inhibited HCC cell malignant phenotype and tumor growth. Moreover, was highly expressed in HCC tissues and cell lines and was positively associated with poor overall survival of patients with HCC. Knockdown of notably suppressed the proliferation, invasion, and migration capacities of HCC cells. Mechanistically, inhibition of by zingerone impeded the malignant biological behavior of HCC cells by inactivating the PI3K/Akt pathway.

CONCLUSION

These results suggested that zingerone served as an effective therapeutic agent in HCC via blocking the -mediated PI3K/Akt pathway.