Dickkopf3 overexpression inhibits pancreatic cancer cell growth in vitro

Figure 4 The effects of dickkopf3 overexpression on pancreatic cancer cells. MIA PaCa-2 cells were transfected with pcDNA3.1-dickkopf3 (Dkk3) or pcDNA3.1 vector. A, B: After transfection, Dkk3 mRNA and protein expression were examined by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR) and Western blotting. The results show that in the pcDNA3.1-Dkk3-transfected MIA PaCa-2 cells, Dkk3 expression was significantly upregulated (P < 0.01, ^aP < 0.01 vs MIA PaCa-2 cells). B, C: β-catenin expression was examined by real-time RT-PCR and western blotting. β-catenin expression was downregulated 48 h and 72 h after transfecting pcDNA3.1-Dkk3 into MIA PaCa-2 cells (P < 0.01, ^aP < 0.01 vs MIA PaCa-2 cells). B: The expression of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (ERK) and phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (pERK) was examined by western blotting. The expression of pERK was simultaneously downregulated, without a significant change in total ERK expression. D: MTS assay results showed that the proliferative ability of pcDNA3.1-Dkk3-transfected cells was lower than that of pcDNA3.1-transfected cells (P < 0.01, ^aP < 0.01). E: Dose-response analysis of pcDNA3.1- or pcDNA3.1-Dkk3-transfected MIA PaCa-2 cells with gemcitabine treatment. Seventy-two hours after gemcitabine addition, the IC50 values for gemcitabine were 0.621 μmol/L for pcDNA3.1-Dkk3-transfected cells and 1.877 μmol/L for pcDNA3.1-transfected cells. PERK: Phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases; ERK: Extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases; RQ: Relative quantitation; Dkk3: Dickkopf3; DMSO: Dimethyl sulfoxide.