Downregulation of ubiquitin-associated protein 2-like with a short hairpin RNA inhibits human glioma cell growth in vitro

Ubiquitin-associated protein 2-like (UBAP2L), which contains a ubiquitin-associated (UBA) domain near its N-terminus, has been indicated in the pathogenesis of several human cancers, including multiple myeloma, hepatocellular carcinoma and malignant ovarian tumors. However, the role of UBAP2L in human glioma remains unknown. In the present study, UBAP2L was widely expressed in multiple glioma cell lines. To further examine the effects of UBAP2L on glioma growth, lentivirus-mediated short hairpin RNA (shRNA) was employed to knockdown UBAP2L expression in the glioblastoma cell lines. Depletion of UBAP2L significantly inhibited the proliferation and colony formation ability, as determined by MTT and colony formation assays. Cell cycle analysis showed that UBAP2L knockdown induced G(0)/G(1) phase arrest in U251 and U373 cells, while S phase arrest was induced in A172 cells. These results suggest that UBAP2L has a key role in glioma cell growth, and may act as an oncogene to promote malignant glioma development.