PTIP promotes recurrence and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most lethal tumors worldwide, which is mainly due to the high recurrence and metastasis rate after hepatectomy. In this study, we found that PTIP expression was dramatically upregulated in human HCC tissues and cell lines. High expression of PTIP was shown to be associated with aggressive clinicopathological features, including liver cirrhosis, vascular invasion and advanced stage. In addition, PTIP overexpression was independently associated with shorter survival and increased HCC recurrence in patients. Knockdown of the PTIP expression significantly inhibited invasion and metastasis in vitro and in vivo, whereas ectopic expression of PTIP significantly promoted invasion and metastasis. Mechanistically, PTIP promotes HCC progress by facilitating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Notably, we also found that PTIP might increase miR-374a expression to promote EMT and metastasis in HCC. In summary, our study identified PTIP as a new potential prognostic indicator and therapeutic target for HCC.