SCARA5 inhibits gastric cancer progression via epithelial-mesenchymal transition suppression

Scavenger receptor class A member 5 (SCARA5) has been reported to be implicated in several types of cancer. However, its biological roles and mechanism of SCARA5 in gastric cancer (GC) have not been elucidated. In the present study, SCARA5 expression was found to be downregulated in GC which was associated with promoter methylation. The protein level of SCARA5 was negatively associated with aggressive clinicopathological characteristics, as well as poor prognosis. Moreover, SCARA5 overexpression markedly suppressed the growth, migration and invasion of GC cell lines in vitro. Furthermore, upregulation of SCARA5 inhibited gastric tumor growth and metastasis in a xenograft model. Mechanistic analysis revealed that SCARA5 suppressed the migration and invasion of GC cells via inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and inactivating MMP-2 and MMP-9. Taken together, these results demonstrated that SCARA5 might play vital roles in the GC genesis and progression and could serve as a potential biomarker for diagnosis and therapeutic target of GC.