Heparanase regulates cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion of papillary thyroid carcinoma cells with multiple signaling pathways involved

Abstract

Background Heparanase (HPSE) is an endo-β-D-glucuronidase, which is found overexpressed in various human cancers. The purpose of our work was to investigate the possible role of HPSE and the involved signaling molecules in the development of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Methods The expression of HPSE was examined in 80 samples of PTC by immunohistochemistry. In cell studies, the expression plasmid of HPSE and RNA interference with shRNA specific for HPSE were used to elucidate the effects of HPSE on proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion in PTC cells of B-CPAP and KTC-1. The probable downstream signaling molecules of HPSE were also explored. Results 75.0% (60 out of 80) of PTC samples was detected high expression of HPSE, which was significantly correlated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis and stage status. In cell studies, the upregulation of HPSE significantly promoted cell proliferation, migration and invasion of B-CPAP and KTC-1 cells, and interfered with cell apoptosis. On the contrary, knockdown of HPSE exhibited the opposite effects. Compared with the parental cells, HPSE silencing cells showed attenuated capabilities of proliferation, migration and invasion, yet the apoptotic rate of transfected cells was increased. The activations of various signaling molecules correlated with cell biological behavior were found to be regulated by HPSE upregulation or knockdown. Conclusions Our results suggested that HPSE probably contributed to the progression and metastasis of PTC, which were associated with multiple signaling pathways. HPSE could be a potent molecular target for the therapeutic strategy of PTC.