Effect of RAB31 silencing on osteosarcoma cell proliferation and migration through the Hedgehog signaling pathway

Abstract

Osteosarcoma (OS) is a prevalent cancer that plagues people worldwide. Identifying prognostic markers would be useful in treating human OS. In this study, we aimed to explore the functions of Ras-related protein Rab-31 (RAB31) in OS-cell proliferation, migration, and invasion as well as its roles in the Hedgehog signaling pathway for better understanding of the mechanism. To assess the detailed regulatory mechanism of RAB31 silencing on OS, both RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis were employed to evaluate the expressions of RAB31 as well as the Hedgehog signaling pathway-related genes. Besides, we also investigated the effects of silenced RAB31 both in vitro and in vivo. First, we found that in OS tissues, both mRNA and protein expressions of RAB31 and PCNA had a significant increase. Second, the Hedgehog signaling pathway was detected to play an integral role in OS progression. Finally, after transfection of RAB31-siRNA to reduce the expression of RAB31, the Hedgehog signaling pathway was suppressed, along with cell proliferation, invasion, and migration. Therefore, we conclude that RAB31 plays an important role in OS development and its silencing delays the OS progression via suppression of the Hedgehog signaling pathway.

Keywords: Hedgehog signaling pathway; Invasion; Osteosarcoma; Proliferation; RAB31.