DEPDC1 upregulation promotes cell proliferation and predicts poor prognosis in patients with gastric cancer

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Previous studies revealed that DEP domain containing 1 (DEPDC1) is involved in the carcinogenesis and progression of several types of human cancer. However the role of DEPDC1 in gastric cancer has not been studied. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to study the expression and pathophysiological function of DEPDC1 in gastric cancer. METHODS: DEPDC1 expression in gastric adenocarcinoma cells was examined with Western blot and qRT-PCR. Clinical pathological features of patients were determined by immunohistochemistry. The effect of DEPDC1 expression on cell proliferation was studied by in vitro cell proliferation assay; and cell cycle influence was assessed by flow cytometry. Survival curves were plotted using Kaplan-Meier. RESULTS: DEPDC1 was overexpressed in gastric adenocarcinoma tissues compared with the paired adjacent normal gastric tissues, in accordance with mRNA level downloaded from GEPIA database. DEPDC1 expression level was significantly associated with cancer metastasis and differentiation. DEPDC1 upregulation caused cell cycle accelerating from G1 to S phase, and it was correlated with poorer overall survival. CONCLUSION: Therefore, DEPDC1 upregulation in gastric adenocarcinoma is associated with tumor development and poor clinical outcomes of the patients, implying DEPDC1 might be a potential therapeutic target against gastric cancer.