CDK Inhibition Reverses Acquired 5-Fluorouracil Resistance in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

BACKGROUND: 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) has been widely applied in treating cancers. However, its usage is largely limited in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), due to acquired resistance. Here, we aim to identify target proteins and investigate their roles in 5-FU sensitivity of HCC cells. METHODS: Mass spectrometry (MS) proteomics was performed on 5-FU-resistant cell line (BEL7402/5-FU) and its parental cell line (BEL7402) with 5-FU treatment. In order to identify potential targets, we compared the proteomics between two cell line groups and used bioinformatics tools to select hub proteins from all differentially expressed proteins. RESULTS: We finally focused on a group of cell cycle-related kinases (CDKs). By CCK8 assay, we confirmed that the CDK inhibitor significantly decreased the IC(50) of 5-FU-resistant cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our study verified that CDK inhibition can reverse 5-FU resistance of HCC cells.