Tetraspanin 1 is involved in survival, proliferation and carcinogenesis of pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer (PCC) is one of the most difficult cancers to treat and the 10th leading cause of cancer-related death in worldwide. Studies have demonstrated that the tetraspanin 1 (Tspan1) is overexpressed in various cancers and may be a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of different cancers. However, the possible role of Tspan1 in PCC is still unknown. In the present study, our data revealed that the increased Tspan1 in PCC tissues was associated with the clinicopathological features and survival rate of PCC patient. We also investigated the effects of Tspan1 gene knockdown on the biological behavior of human PCC. The expression of Tspan1 (detected by immunohistochemistry, qRT-PCR and western blot analysis) derived from human PCC tissues and cell lines (AsPC-1 and PANC-1), were significantly elevated compared with those of the control (P<0.05). Transfection with siRNA-targeting Tspan1 significantly decreased proliferation, increased the apoptosis and reduced migration and invasion of AsPC-1 and PANC-1 cells. The present study demonstrated that Tspan1 plays an important role in PCC carcinogenic progression, including migration and invasion. The siRNA targeting of Tspan1 may be a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of PCC.