Open Access

Co‑inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 enhances chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo

  • Authors:
    • Jiansong Wang
    • Huaijun Ji
    • Qiang Zhu
    • Xinshuang Yu
    • Juan Du
    • Zhongmin Jiang
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: March 19, 2019     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2019.10160
  • Pages: 5012-5022
  • Copyright: © Wang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) accounts for almost 90% of esophageal cancer cases and is the sixth most common cause of cancer‑associated mortality worldwide. Cisplatin is the standard therapeutic reagent for ESCC; however, chemoresistance frequently occurs after a few weeks, which leads to ESCC recurrence. Aberrant expression of B lymphoma Mo‑MLV insertion region 1 homolog (BMI1) has been reported to activate multiple growth‑regulatory pathways, induce antiapoptotic abilities in numerous types of cancer cells and promote chemoresistance. However, to the best of our knowledge, the role of BMI1 in cisplatin‑resistant ESCC, and the interaction between BMI1 and its homologue melanoma nuclear protein 18 (Mel18) remain unknown. The present study identified that knockdown of BMI1 promoted cytotoxic effects of cisplatin, and co‑inhibition of Mel18 and BMI1 enhanced cisplatin‑induced apoptosis and cytotoxicity. Inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 also suppressed the expression of c‑Myc. Furthermore, this combined inhibition sensitized esophageal xenograft tumors to cisplatin to a greater extent compared with BMI1 inhibition alone. In summary, the current study demonstrated that inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 could increase the sensitivity of esophageal cancer cells to cisplatin via inhibition of c‑Myc. Therefore, combined targeting of BMI1 and Mel18 may serve as a promising therapeutic strategy for sensitizing ESCC to chemotherapy.
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June-2019
Volume 17 Issue 6

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
Online ISSN:1792-1082

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Spandidos Publications style
Wang J, Ji H, Zhu Q, Yu X, Du J and Jiang Z: Co‑inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 enhances chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo. Oncol Lett 17: 5012-5022, 2019.
APA
Wang, J., Ji, H., Zhu, Q., Yu, X., Du, J., & Jiang, Z. (2019). Co‑inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 enhances chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo. Oncology Letters, 17, 5012-5022. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2019.10160
MLA
Wang, J., Ji, H., Zhu, Q., Yu, X., Du, J., Jiang, Z."Co‑inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 enhances chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo". Oncology Letters 17.6 (2019): 5012-5022.
Chicago
Wang, J., Ji, H., Zhu, Q., Yu, X., Du, J., Jiang, Z."Co‑inhibition of BMI1 and Mel18 enhances chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in vitro and in vivo". Oncology Letters 17, no. 6 (2019): 5012-5022. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2019.10160