Ma Lijuan, Liu Li, Ji Min, Su Liping, Guan Yaling, Xiao Jinling, Pu Hongwei
State Key Laboratory of Pathogenesis, Prevention and Treatment of High Incidence Diseases in Central Asia, Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xinjiang Medical University, No. 567, Shangde North Road, Urumqi 830017, Xinjiang, China.
Department of Pathology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical University, No. 137, Liyushan South Road, Urumqi 830054, Xinjiang, China.
Open Life Sci. 2023 Sep 30;18(1):20220743. doi: 10.1515/biol-2022-0743. eCollection 2023.
The aim of this study was to analyze the role of Ezrin in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and investigate potential therapeutic targets for ESCC by interfering with Ezrin expression. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that Ezrin expression differed significantly among patients with different clinical stage ESCC. Moreover, there was a significant correlation between Ezrin and yes-associated protein/connective tissue growth factor (YAP/CTGF) levels in esophageal cancer. Sixty paraffin-embedded ESCC tissue samples were examined and Ezrin and YAP/CTGF levels were determined using immunohistochemistry. The positive expression rates of Ezrin and YAP/CTGF were significantly lower in adjacent tissues than in ESCC tissues. Furthermore, knockdown of Ezrin expression inhibited colony formation and reduced cell migration and invasion. Compared with control ESCC cells, protein expression levels of YAP and CTGF were significantly downregulated in cells with Ezrin knocked down. We conclude that Ezrin may be involved in ESCC progression through the Hippo signaling pathway.
本研究旨在分析埃兹蛋白（Ezrin）在食管鳞状细胞癌（ESCC）中的作用，并通过干扰Ezrin表达来探索ESCC潜在的治疗靶点。生物信息学分析显示，不同临床分期的ESCC患者中Ezrin表达存在显著差异。此外，食管癌中Ezrin与Yes相关蛋白/结缔组织生长因子（YAP/CTGF）水平之间存在显著相关性。检测了60例石蜡包埋的ESCC组织样本，并采用免疫组织化学法测定Ezrin和YAP/CTGF水平。Ezrin和YAP/CTGF在癌旁组织中的阳性表达率显著低于ESCC组织。此外，Ezrin表达的敲低抑制了集落形成，并减少了细胞迁移和侵袭。与对照ESCC细胞相比，Ezrin敲低的细胞中YAP和CTGF的蛋白表达水平显著下调。我们得出结论，Ezrin可能通过Hippo信号通路参与ESCC的进展。
