SEMA3C promotes thyroid cancer via the Wnt/β-catenin pathway.

Semaphorin 3C (SEMA3C) regulates the progression of several tumors. However, the role of SEMA3C in thyroid cancer remains unknow. In the present study, SEMA3C was overexpressed or knocked down in thyroid cancer cell lines BCPAP and IHH-4. It was found that SEMA3C promoted the cell migration, invasion, and mesenchymal-epithelial transition (EMT) process. SEMA3C overexpression enhanced tumor cell stemness, while SEMA3C knockdown showed the opposite effects. In vivo experiments suggested that SEMA3C accelerated the tumor growth and metastasis. Moreover, SEMA3C enhanced β-catenin nuclear translocation. When cells were treated with Dickkopf-1 (DKK1), an inhibitor of Wnt/β-catenin pathway, the promoting effects of SEMA3C on cell migration and stemness were offset. Wnt/β-catenin pathway mediated the roles of SEMA3C in thyroid cancer. Additionally, an upstream regulator of SEMA3C was identified. E1A binding protein P300 (P300) was found to increase the histone three lysine 27 acetylation (H3K27ac) level of SEMA3C, promoting its transcriptional activation. Therefore, we clarify that SEMA3C exerts a tumor-promoting effect on thyroid cancer, and Wnt/β-catenin pathway is the critical downstream pathway.