Gastric Cancer
Copyright ©2008 The WJG Press and Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Apr 14, 2008; 14(14): 2162-2167
Published online Apr 14, 2008. doi: 10.3748/wjg.14.2162
Effect of NHE1 antisense gene transfection on the biological behavior of SGC-7901 human gastric carcinoma cells
Hai-Feng Liu, Xiao-Chun Teng, Jing-Chen Zheng, Gang Chen, Xing-Wei Wang
Hai-Feng Liu, Jing-Chen Zheng, Department of Gastro-enterology, General Hospital of Chinese People’s Armed Police Forces, Beijing 100039, China
Xiao-Chun Teng, Gang Chen, Xing-Wei Wang, Department of Gastroenterology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
Author contributions: Liu HF designed research; Liu HF, Teng XC, Zheng JC, Chen G, Wang XW performed research; Liu HF, Teng XC analyzed data and wrote the paper.
Correspondence to: Professor Hai-Feng Liu, Department of Gastroenterology, General Hospital of Chinese People’s Armed Police Forces, Beijing 100039, China. haifengliu333@163.com
Telephone: +86-10-88276549
Fax: +86-10-88276551
Received: October 20, 2007
Revised: February 14, 2008
Published online: April 14, 2008
Abstract

AIM: To study the effect of type 1 Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE1) antisense human gene transfection on the biological behavior of gastric carcinoma cell line SGC-7901.

METHODS: Antisense NHE1 eukaryotic expression on vector pcDNA3.1 was constructed by recombinant DNA technique and transfected into gastric carcinoma cell line SGC-7901 with DOTAP liposome transfection method. Morphological changes of cells were observed with optic and electron microscopes. Changes in cell proliferative capacity, apoptosis, intracellular pH (pHi), cell cycle, clone formation in two-layer soft agar, and tumorigenicity in nude mice were examined.

RESULTS: Antisense eukaryotic expressing vectors were successfully constructed and transfected into SGC-7901. The transfectant obtained named 7901-antisense (7901-AS) stablely produced antisense NHE1. There was a significant difference between the pHi of 7901-AS cells (6.77 ± 0.05) and that of 7901-zeo cells and SGC-7901 cells (7.24 ± 0.03 and 7.26 ± 0.03, P < 0.01). Compared with SGC-7901 and 7901-zeo cells, 7901-AS cells mostly showed cell proliferation inhibition, G1/G0 phase arrest, increased cell apoptotic rate, recovery of contact inhibition, and density contact. The tumorigenicity in nude mice and cloning efficiency in the two-layer soft agar were clearly inhibited.

CONCLUSION: NHE1 antisense gene significantly restrains the malignant behavior of human gastric carcinoma cells, suppresses cell growth and induces cell apoptosis, and partially reverses the malignant phenotypes of SGC-7901. These results suggest a potential role for human tumor gene therapy.

Keywords: NHE1 gene; Eukaryotic expression vector; Antisense gene therapy; Gastric cancer