Interleukin-6 Induced STAT3 Signal In HNSCC Cells Promotes Haptoglobin α Subunit Expression

• Main Authors: Szu Chin, Li, 李思錦
• Other Authors: Hsien-Bin, Huang
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2012
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/01400009816453938622

碩士 === 國立中正大學 === 分子生物研究所 === 100 === Haptoglobin (Hp), a serum α2-sialoglycoprotein, is an acute phase protein secreted by the liver, and its concentration increases rapidly in the status of infection, inflammation, and tumor formation. The Hp molecule is composed of two subunits, α and β. Two alleles of the α subunit, α1 and α2, constitutes the polymorphism of Hp and provides distinct biological functions. Our previous research already revealed that the expression level of Hp α alleles was altered in the serum of the head and neck cancer patients, with decreased expression of Hp α1 and increased expression of Hp α2, respectively. Moreover, the patients carrying the Hp α2 allele have relatively higher probability of recurrence or metastasis. Thus far, how Hp variants contribute to cancer progression has not been clarified. Therefore, in this study, HNSCC cell lines with distinct Hp alleles were investigated to illustrate the responses of the Hp alleles to immunological signaling. Our result demonstrates that expression of Hp could be activated via Interleukin-6 by activation of transcription factor STAT3. In the future, we intend to further clarify the signal transduction pathway involved in the Hp-induced carcinogenesis in head and neck cancer and to establish Hp as an effective predictor for cancer progression.