文摘
Background The natriuretic peptide receptor-A (NPRA) has been investigated as a receptor of natriuretic peptides in the cardiovascular system. In this study, however, we analyze the expression status of NPRA and the relationship with tumor invasion in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) for the first time. Methods Western blots were used to examine the expression status of protein in human ESCC cell lines. Then, we used immunohistochemistry to detect the expression of NPRA in 45 ESCC specimens and 40 corresponding nontumor tissues. The clinical data were analyzed through statistical methods. Sh-RNA-NPRA was transfected into Eca109 cells to detect the relationship between NPRA and cell invasion through transwell assays. Results In esophageal squamous cells, the expression of NPRA was strongly detected in the cytoplasm, while undetectable or very weak in the nucleus. The positive rates of NPRA in cancer tissues are significantly higher than that in nontumor tissues (P P in vitro and may be involved in MMP2 and MMP9 activation. Conclusions NPRA protein is highly expressed in ESCC tissues and could promote Eca109 cell migration and invasion in vitro.