Abstract:

Objective   To explore the role of negative immunoregulatory gene A20 in human hepatocellular carcinoma（HCC）, we investigated the expression of A20 gene in HCC and constructed the A20 eukaryotic expression vector. Methods   The expressions of A20 gene in tumor tissues and tumor-adjacent tissues from 46 HCC patients were detected by immunohistochemistry. The A20 eukaryotic expression vector was constructed and transfected into SMMC-7721 HCC cell lines by the liposome. The mRNA and the protein levels of A20 were detected by the RT-PCR and Western blot methods. Results   A20 expression in tumor tissues was significantly lower than that in tumor-adjacent tissues(P＜0.05). A20 expression was closely associated with the tumor differentiation degree and size (P＜0.05). The A20 eukaryotic expression vector was successfully constructed which induced the overexpression of A20 in SMMC -7721 cell lines. Conclusion   Negative immunoregulatory gene A20 may be involved in the tumorigenesis of HCC. The A20 eukaryotic expression vector is successfully constructed which can be an important tool for the further study.

Key words: Human hepatocellular carcinoma; Immunohistochemistry; A20 eukaryotic expression vector; NF-κB signal pathway