Apoptosis of human esophageal squamous cancer cells induced by RNA interference targeting HIF1α plus cisplatin

Objective To study the effect of HIF-lα siRNA combined with cisplatin on apoptosis of human esophageal squamous cancer cells. Methods siRNA targeting HIF-lα (siRNA-HIF-lα) was constructed. TE-1 cells in vitro were divided into four groups:group A treated with normal saline,group B with cisplatin,group C with siRNA-HIF-lα,and group D with siRNA-HIF-lα and cisplatin.The apoptosis of TE-1 cells were determined by flow cytometry. The expression of HIF-lα mRNA and protein was detected by RT-PCR and Western-blot,respectively. Results The expression of HIF-lα mRNA in groups A, B,C and D was (0.5325 ±0.0809) ,(0.5003 ±0.0726) ,(0.0986 ±0.0171) and (0.0849 ±0.0133) respectively; the expression of HIF-lα protein in groups A,B,C,and D was (0.7280 ±0.0268), (0.7115 ± 0.1293) ,(0.2362 ±0. 0266) and (0. 1917 ±0. 0234) respectively. There was significant difference between group D and groups A,B (P 0.05).The apoptois index in groups A,B,C and D was (3.23 ±0.61)% ,(29. 88 ± 3.48) % , (34.48 ± 5.69) % and (56. 37 ± 7. 99) % . There was significant difference between group D and other three control groups (P<0.01). Conclusion siRNA-HIF-α can significantly increase the cytotoxicity of cisplatin, increase apoptosis of TE-1 cells, and improve the effectiveness of chemotherapy. Key words: Esophageal neoplasm; RNA interference; HIF-lα; Cisplatin; Apoptosis