ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the influences of different matrix stiffness on proliferation ability and glucose metabolism of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells and to explore the correlation between metabolism and biological behavior changes of HCC cells resulted from the stiffness of extracellular matrix (ECM)．Methods The proliferation changes of HepG2 cells cultured on matrix with different stiffness were detected by CCK-8 assay and cell count assay. 2-NBDG and flow cytometry were used to detect the effect of matrix stiffness on glucose uptake. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression level of Glut1. Then, 2-DG was used to inhibit glycolysis, and the influences of matrix stiffness on proliferation of HepG2 cells were detected. Results The proliferation ability, glucose uptake and the expression of Glut1 of HepG2 cells increased with the matrix stiffness increasing. When glycolysis was inhibited, the proliferation ability of HepG2 cells grown on matrix with different stiffness was similar. Conclusions The mechanical microenvironment had an important effect on proliferation of HCC cells; matrix with a larger stiffness might promote proliferation of HCC cells through regulating glycolysis. The research findings provide a corresponding experimental basis for the clinical treatment of HCC cells and drug development targeting glucose metabolism.