Gfi-1 promotes proliferation of human cervical carcinoma via targeting of FBW7 ubiquitin ligase expression

BACKGROUND: The independent growth factor 1 (Gfi-1) is a transcription factor essential for several diverse hematopoietic functions and developments. However, the role and molecular mechanism of Gfi-1 in the development and progression of cervical cancer remains unclear. PURPOSE: The present study investigates the relation of expression of Gfi-1 with prognoses in patients with cervical cancer. METHODS: We used Western blot and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the inhibition of proliferation and metastasis of cervical cancer cells in vitro. RESULTS: This study confirms that the expression of Gfi-1 in cervical cancer tissues was higher than that in adjacent normal tissues. The level of Gfi-1 mRNA in human cervical cancer tissues was significantly higher than that in normal tissues adjacent to cancer. Furthermore, overexpression of Gfi-1 promoted cell proliferation, colony formation, and migration of cervical cancer cells. The increased expression of Gfi-1 promotes the proliferation of cervical cancer cells targeting the tumor suppressor F-box and WD repeat domain containing 7 (FBW7). Clinically, our data suggest that overexpression of Gfi-1 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with cervical cancer. In a tumor xenograft model, knockdown of Gfi-1 inhibited the tumor growth of Hela cells in vivo. CONCLUSION: Our results reveal that Gfi-1 plays an important role in cervical cancer and Gfi-1/FBW7 axis serves as a potential therapeutic target for cervical cancer.