Abstract:

Objective  To evaluate the molecular mechanism of proliferation and invasion inhibition in oral squamous cell carcinoma transfected with recombinant adenovirus-p53 (Ad-p53) . Methods  Tca8113 cell lines were transfected with Ad-p53. Then the effect of p53 overexpression on cancer cells proliferation and invasion was observed. The expression of mitogen -activated protein kinase (MAPK) , serine/threonine kinase (AKT) signaling pathway related proteins, cell cycle and apoptosis related proteins Cyclin D1, P21 and Bcl-2 were detected by Western blotting analysis. Results  After transfected with Ad-p53, the proliferation and invasion of Tca8113 cells were significantly inhibited (P<0.01) and the apoptosis of Tca8113 cells significantly increased (P<0.001). The results of Western blotting demonstrated that the protein expression of P53 and P21 significantly increased, Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 protein expression and phosphorylation of AKT protein significantly decreased (P<0.01) . Conclusion  The AKT signaling pathway may be a key molecular mechanism for proliferation and invasion inhibition of oral squamous cell carcinoma caused by p53. The protein of Cyclin D1, P21 and Bcl-2 may be the downstream targets of AKT signaling pathway. This may provide a new evidence for AKT pathway and downstream targets as a promising therapeutic target for malignant tumors.

Key words: oral squamous cell carcinoma, serine/threonine kinase signaling pathway, cell proliferation, invasion