EFNA4 promotes cell proliferation and tumor metastasis in hepatocellular carcinoma through a PIK3R2/GSK3β/β-catenin positive feedback loop.

ABSTRACT: Rapid tumor progression, metastasis, and diagnosis in advanced stages of disease are the main reasons for the short survival time and high mortality rate of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Ephrin A4 (EFNA4), the ligand of the EPH family, participates in the development of blood vessels and epithelium by regulating cell migration and rejection. In our study, based on bioinformatics analyses, we found that EFNA4 was highly expressed and led to poor prognosis in patients with HCC. We demonstrated that overexpression of EFNA4 significantly promoted HCC cell proliferation and migration in vivo or in vitro. In addition, knockdown of EFNA4 inhibited the proliferation and migration of HCC cells. Furthermore, EFNA4 was found to directly interact with EPHA2 and promote it

SUBMITTER: Lin J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8397841 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature