VEGF-B targeting by aryl hydrocarbon receptor mediates the migration and invasion of choriocarcinoma stem-like cells

Unlike other members of the VEGF family, the function of VEGF-B in tumor progression remains to be elucidated. Thus, the present study aimed to determine the function of VEGF-B in human choriocarcinoma cells by investigating its detailed effects and molecular mechanisms. VEGF-B and aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) expression were evaluated by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR analysis and western blot analysis in JEG-3 cells and choriocarcinoma stem-like cells (CSLCs) and their proliferation, migration, and invasion after the transfection of short hairpin RNA VEGF-B, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD; AhR agonist) treatment or StemRegenin 1 (SR1; AhR antagonist) treatment were examined by cell proliferation assay, wound healing assay and Transwell assay. In addition, luciferase reporter analysis and bioinformatics data mining were used to investigate the association between VEGF-B and AhR. Upregulation of VEGF-B and AhR expression was observed in CSLCs. Following VEGF-B knockdown or SR1 treatment, the proliferative, migratory, and invasive abilities of CSLCs were significantly decreased, contrary to the findings after TCDD treatment. It was also found that AhR enhanced VEGF-B transcriptional activity by binding to the relative promoter region. These observations indicated that VEGF-B may be an oncogene that promotes choriocarcinoma cell migration and invasion targeted by AhR. Therefore, targeting VEGF-B may provide a novel therapeutic opportunity for choriocarcinoma. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12935-022-02641-8.