Livin gene plays a role in drug resistance of colon cancer cells

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the effect of knockdown of Livin expression on reversing drug resistance phenotype of colon cancer HCT-8/V cells.Design and methodsSpecific short hairpin RNA (shRNA) was chosen and transfected in human colon cancer HCT-8/V cell line. Cell apoptosis and chemosensitivity were evaluated following downregulation of Livin expression.ResultsIn the current study, Livin was found to be highly expressed in the HCT-8/V colon cancer cells, which were resistant to several anti-tumor drugs. Knocking down of Livin expression in HCT-8/V cells by specific RNAi facilitated the apoptosis of HCT-8/V cells in response to vincristine (VCR), etoposide (VP-16), and 5-flourouracil (5-FU). Chemosensitivity assay confirmed the results and demonstrated the reversal of drug resistance phenotype of HCT-8/V cells.ConclusionThese data suggest that specific silencing of Livin gene expression could be a promising target for further research in clinical chemotherapy of colon cancer.