Cytokeratin 18 regulates the transcription and alternative splicing of apoptotic‑related genes and pathways in HeLa cells.

ABSTRACT: Cytokeratin 18 (CK18), one of the major components of intermediate filaments (IF) in simple epithelial cells, undergoes caspase‑mediated cleavage upon epithelial cell necrosis and apoptosis. CK18 has been used as a biomarker of several cancers and has been reported to be dysregulated in cervical cancers. The effects of dysregulated expression of CK18 at a molecular level are, however, unclear. In the present study, the function of CK18 in HeLa cells, a cell line derived from a cervical cancer cells, was investigated using shRNA knockdown. Reduced levels of CK18 led to a significant decrease in cell apoptosis, compared with control cells. Notably, RNA‑seq analysis of the transcriptomes of HeLa cells, with or without CK18 knockdown, revealed that genes in the NF‑κB pathway, and certain apopt

SUBMITTER: Cheng Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6549092 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature