ABSTRACT
【Objective】 To investigate the role of dual-specific phosphatase 6 （DUSP6） in the regulation of human lens epithelial cells （HLECs） epithelial-mesenchymal transition （EMT） and extracellular matrix （ECM） synthesis induced by transforming growth factor β2 （TGF-β2）. 【Methods】 Human lens epithelial B3 （HLE-B3） cells were treated with 10 μg/L of TGF-β2 for 0 h，12 h， 24 h and 48 h. Then we detected the expressions of α-smooth muscle actin （α-SMA） and fibronectin （Fn） by real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR （RT-qPCR） and Western blotting. The overexpression vector of DUSP6 was constructed and transfected into HLE-B3 cell line and divided into three groups： TGF-β2， empty vector （EV）+TGF-β2， and DUSP6+TGF-β2. RT-qPCR and Western blotting were used to detect the effect of overexpression of DUSP6 on the expressions of α-SMA and Fn. Scratch test and Transwell migration test were used to evaluate the effect of DUSP6 overexpression on cell migration. 【Results】 Compared with the control group， the expressions of DUSP6 mRNA and protein decreased after 10 μg/L of TGF-β2 treatment for 24 h （P<0.05）. Compared with EV+TGF-β2 group， DUSP6+TGF-β2 group inhibited the migration of HLE-B3 cells and the expressions of α-SMA and Fn （P<0.05）. 【Conclusion】 DUSP6 could inhibit EMT and ECM synthesis in lens epithelial cells induced by TGF-β2， which might provide a potential therapeutic strategy for posterior capsule opacification.