Effect of the Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway on apoptosis, migration, and invasion of transplanted hepatocellular carcinoma cells after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization in rats

摘要

Abstract This study aims to investigate the influence of the Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway on apoptosis, migration, and invasion of transplanted hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) in rat models. A total of 80 rats were grouped into sham, TACE, Wnt‐C59, and TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 groups ( n ?=?20). Ten days after model establishment, 10 rats in each group were executed to perform pathological examination and follow‐up experiment, and the remaining 10 rats in each group were reared to observe the survival condition. RT‐qPCR and Western blotting were applied to determine the expressions of Wnt1, β‐catenin, cyclin D1, c‐met, vimentin, E‐cadherin, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). ELISA was performed to measure the serum alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP) content of rats. Flow cytometry was used to evaluate cell apoptosis rate and transwell assay to examine cell migration and invasion. Compared with the TACE group, the Wnt‐C59 and TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 groups showed increased apoptosis and survival time (the TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 group??the Wnt‐C59 group). Compared with the sham group, the TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 groups showed decreased cancer tissue weight and expressions of Wnt1, β‐catenin, cyclin D1, vimentin, c‐met, and VEGF, but increased E‐cadherin expression. Compared with the TACE group, the Wnt‐C59 and TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 groups showed decreased AFP level, migration, and invasion (the TACE?+?Wnt‐C59 group??the Wnt‐C59 group). These findings indicate inhibition of the Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway improves therapeutic effect on TACE via suppressing migration, invasion, and promoting apoptosis of transplanted HCC cells in rats.