(肿瘤生物学)Monoacylglycerol lipase promotes metastases in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.pdf

Int J Clin Exp Pathol 2014;7(7):3704-3713 /ISSN:1936-2625/IJCEP0000807 Original Article Monoacylglycerol lipase promotes metastases in nasopharyngeal carcinoma Wen-Rong Hu1,2, Yi-Fan Lian1,2, Li-Xia Peng1,2, Jin-Ju Lei1,2, Cheng-Cheng Deng1,2, Miao Xu1,2, Qi-Sheng Feng1,2, Li-Zhen Chen1,2, Jin-Xin Bei1,2, Yi-Xin Zeng1,2 1State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China; 2De- partment of Experimental Research, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China Received May 16, 2014; Accepted May 21, 2014; Epub June 15, 2014; Published July 1, 2014 Abstract: Monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) is a serine hydrolase that hydrolyzes monoacylglycerides into free fatty acids and glycerol. It has recently been found to be involved in cancer progression through the free fatty acid or endocannabinoid network after studies on its function in the endocannabinoid system. Here, we determined a role for MAGL in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), which is known for its high metastatic potential. Among the different NPC cells we tested, MAGL was highly expressed in high metastatic NPC cells, whereas low metastatic potential NPC cells exhibited lower expression of MAGL. Overexpression of MAGL in low metastatic NPC cells enhanced their motile behavior and metastatic capacity in vivo. Conversely, knockdown of MAGL reduced the motility of highly metastatic cells, reducing their metastatic capacity in vivo. Growth rate was not influenced by MAGL in either high or low meta- static cells. MAGL expression was associated with the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) proteins, such as E-cadherin, vimentin and Snail. It was also related to the sidepopulation (SP) of NPC cells. Our findings establish that MAGL promotes metastases in NPC through EMT, and it may serve as a target for the prevention of NPC metastases. Keywords: MAGL, metastases, nasopharyngeal carcinoma Introduction