Anti-EGFL7 antibodies inhibit rat prolactinoma MMQ cells proliferation and PRL secretion

Prolactinoma is the most frequently diagnosed pituitary tumors. Dopamine agonists (DAs) are recognized as first-line therapy; however, approximately 10% patients will develop resistance to DAs therapy. Consequently, a large number of investigations have been carried out to identify novel therapeutic...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Liu Qian, Yuan Taoyang, Gao Hua, Gui Songbai, Zhang Yazhuo, Li Chuzhong
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2018-07-01
Series:Open Chemistry
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/chem-2018-0064
Description
Summary:Prolactinoma is the most frequently diagnosed pituitary tumors. Dopamine agonists (DAs) are recognized as first-line therapy; however, approximately 10% patients will develop resistance to DAs therapy. Consequently, a large number of investigations have been carried out to identify novel therapeutic targets. Recently, studies have suggested that epidermal growth factor-like domain 7 (EGFL7) can promote tumor growth, invasion, and angiogenesis. We previously reported that overexpression of EGFL7 might play a crucial role in hormone-producing pituitary adenomas. In the present study, we now demonstrated a significantly higher protein expression of EGFL7 in prolactinoma compared with the normal pituitary gland. However, inhibition of EGFL7 with anti-EGFL7 antibodies significantly reduced the proliferation and PRL secretion of rat prolactinoma MMQ cells. Notably, in vitro administration of anti-EGFL7 antibodies significantly induced MMQ cells apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, our finding suggests that EGFL7 is significantly overexpressed in prolactinoma and inhibition of EGFL7 with antibodies promoted MMQ cells apoptosis and inhibited PRL secretion. Thus, EGFL7 may serve as a potential novel therapeutic target for prolactinomas.
ISSN:2391-5420