Silencing of CDCA5 inhibits cancer progression and serves as a prognostic biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma

Cell division cycle associated 5 (CDCA5) has been associated with the progression of several types of cancers. However, its possible role and mechanism in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remain unknown. In the present study, immunohistochemical staining and real-time PCR were used to assess CDCA5 protein and mRNA levels in clinical samples. Statistical analysis was performed to explore the clinical correlation between CDCA5 protein expression and clinicopathological features and overall survival in HCC patients. Cell counting and colony formation assays were employed to analyse the effect of CDCA5 on cell proliferation, and flow cytometry was used to study the role of CDCA5 in cell cycle progression and apoptosis. Moreover, subcutaneous xenograft tumour models were implemented to predict the efficacy of targeting CDCA5 in HCC in vivo. We found that CDCA5 expression was significantly higher in HCC tumour tissues, was associated with clinicopathological characteristics, and predicted poor overall survival in HCC patients. Silencing of CDCA5 with small interfering RNA (siRNA) inhibited cell proliferation and induced G2/M cell cycle arrest in vitro. The xenograft growth assay revealed that CDCA5 downregulation impeded HCC growth in vivo. Further study indicated that CDCA5 depletion decreased the levels of ERK1/2 and AKT phosphorylation in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, these results indicate that CDCA5 may act as a novel prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for HCC.