Background: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is the second most common type of hepatocellular carcinoma with high aggressiveness and extremely poor prognosis. Homo sapiens germ cell associated 2 (GSG2) is a histone H3 threonine-3 kinase required for normal mitosis. Nevertheless, the role and mechanism of GSG2 in progression and development of CCA remain elusive.
Methods: In the present study, correlation between GSG2 and CCA was elaborated by IHC, Mann-Whitney U and Spearman grading correlation. GSG2 knockdown cell lines were successfully constructed and further used to construct mouse xenotransplantation models. Subsequently, cell proliferation, cell apoptosis, cell cycle and cell migration were detected by MTT assay, Flow Cytometry and wound-healing assay, respectively.
Results: It was demonstrated that GSG2 was overexpressed in CCA specimens and relevant cell lines. The statistical analysis determined that high GSG2 expression was positively associated with more advanced tumor grade. Importantly, GSG2 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, migration, promoted cell apoptosis and arrested cell cycle in G2 phase. Meanwhile, in vivo results also supported that GSG2 knockdown inhibit tumor growth. Additionally, GSG2 was involved in CCA progression via suppressing EMT.
Conclusions: In summary, our findings suggested that GSG2 may be a potential therapeutic target for CCA patients.