Expression Of WTAP In Ovarian Cancer And Its Relationship With The Progression Of Ovarian Cancer

Background:The Wilms’ tumor suppressor WT1 is reported to work in a range of physiological processes at both transcriptional and posttranscriptional level.WT1-associating protein(WTAP),a nuclear protein co-localized with splicing factors,also plays a vital role in cellular function and cancer progression.However,little is known about the role of WTAP in epithelial ovarian cancer(EOC)and the underlying mechanism.Methods:To evaluate the expression of WTAP,multiple means were applied in clinical tissues,including immunohistochemistry(IHC),quantitative real-time PCR(qPCR)and Western blot.And the relationship between WTAP expression and clinical features of patients was also analyzed.EOC cell lines were used to assess the malignant influence of WTAP on proliferation,apoptosis,and migration.To explore its function,WTAP was additionally down-regulated by lentivirus.Results:High expression of WTAP in serous ovarian cancer(SOC)predicted a shorter overall survival(P<0.01).WTAP expression was higher in EOC,compared with that in benign and borderline ovarian tumors and normal ovary.High expression of WTAP was significantly related to histological type(P<0.01)and lymph node metastasis(P<0.05).WTAP down-regulation in EOC cell lines considerably reduced cell proliferation and migration,and induced cell apoptosis.Moreover,the effect of WTAP in EOC was achieved through MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling pathways.Conclusion:WTAP expression in EOC is higher than normal ovarian tissue,and high expression of WTAP is associated with overall survival and some malignant behavior.Down-regulation of WTAP may inhibit the proliferation,colony formation and migration of EOC cell lines by affecting AKT and MAPK signaling pathways,and promote apoptosis,thereby exerting its anti-cancer function.This study provides a direction for our follow-up study that WTAP may be a potential target for the diagnosis and treatment of EOC.