MAEL Augments Cancer Stemness Properties and Resistance to Sorafenib in Hepatocellular Carcinoma through the PTGS2/AKT/STAT3 Axis.

ABSTRACT: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for tumorigenesis, therapeutic resistance, and metastasis in hepatocellular cancer (HCC). Cancer/testis antigen Maelstrom (MAEL) is implicated in the formation of CSC phenotypes, while the exact role and underlying mechanism remain unclear. Here, we found the upregulation of MAEL in HCC, with its expression negatively correlated with survival outcome. Functionally, MAEL promoted tumor cell aggressiveness, tumor stem-like potentials, and resistance to sorafenib in HCC cell lines. Transcriptional profiling indicated the dysregulation of stemness in MAEL knockout cells and identified PTGS2 as a critical downstream target transactivated by MAEL. The suppression effect of MAEL knockout in tumor aggressiveness was rescued in PTGS2 overexpression HCC cells

SUBMITTER: Shi C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9221398 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature