Effects of short hairpin RNA expression plasmid targeting vascular endothelial growth factor-C on the proliferation and invasion of HepG2 cells / 中华消化外科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the effects of short hairpin RNA (shRNA) expression plasmid targeting vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C) on the proliferation and invasion of HepG2 cells. Methods The VEGF-C shRNA plasmid vector labeled with green fluorescent protein was constructed and stably transfected into HepG2 cells. The transfected cells were sorted by G418 and visualized by fluorescent microscope and assayed by flow cytometry. Expression of VEGF-C in transfected cells was determined by RT-PCR and Western blot. The inhibition rates of the cell proliferation and invasion were determined by MTT assay and reconstituted basement membrane invasion assay, respectively. Results VEGF-C shRNA effectively downregulated VEGF-C mRNA and protein expression in HepG2 cells, and it also effectively inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a time-dependent manner. The invasion capacity of HepG2 cells was inhibited by VEGF-C shRNA, and the inhibition rate was 51.54%. Conclusions VEGF-C plays an important role in tumor proliferation, invasion and metastasis. RNA interfering technology that targets VEGF-C may serve as a potential therapeutic intervention in the treatment of human hepatic cancer.