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PD-L1 induces epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition via activating SREBP-1c in renal cell carcinoma

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Abstract

The incidence of kidney cancer has been increasing globally during the past two decades. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most aggressive subtype of kidney cancer, which usually deteriorates with epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) that facilitates the migration and invasion of cancer cells. Till now, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we demonstrated that programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1/B7-H1/CD274) could induce EMT and enhance RCC cell cancer stemness through up-regulation of SREBP-1c. Furthermore, we found that PD-L1 is up-regulated in human RCC metastases. These results, taken together, provide evidence for a novel mechanism of PD-L1 in RCC progression, suggesting that there is a close relationship between EMT and immune escape signaling pathways in RCC.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by Scientific Research Projects of Shanghai under the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, Grant Number 14ZR1406300. This research work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No. 81472376.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Urology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, 180 Fenglin Rd., Shanghai, 200032, China

      Yiwei Wang, Hang Wang, Qi Zhao, Yu Xia, Xiaoyi Hu & Jianming Guo

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    1. Yiwei Wang
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    2. Hang Wang
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    3. Qi Zhao
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    4. Yu Xia
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    5. Xiaoyi Hu
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    6. Jianming Guo
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    Correspondence to Jianming Guo.

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    None of the contributing authors have any conflict of interest, including specific financial interests or relationships and affiliations relevant to the subject matter or materials discussed in this article.

    Ethical standard

    This study has been approved by the ethics committee of Fudan University and has therefore been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki 1964 and its later amendment.

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    Yiwei Wang and Hang Wang contributed equally to this work and should be considered co-first authors.

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    Wang, Y., Wang, H., Zhao, Q. et al. PD-L1 induces epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition via activating SREBP-1c in renal cell carcinoma. Med Oncol 32, 212 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-015-0655-2

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