Overexpressed FAM111B degrades GSDMA to promote esophageal cancer tumorigenesis and cisplatin resistance

Background: Chemotherapeutic agents such as cisplatin are commonly used in patients with clinically unresectable or recurrent esophageal cancer (ESCA). However, patients often develop resistance to cisplatin, which in turn leads to a poor prognosis. Studies have shown that FAM111B may be involved in the development of tumors as an oncogene or tumor suppressor gene. However, the pathological role and corresponding mechanism of FAM111B in ESCA are still unclear.

Methods: The GEPIA web tool, ENCORI Pan-Cancer Analysis Platform and UALCAN-TCGA database were used to study the expression of FAM111B in ESCA. CCK-8, angiogenesis, Transwell and xenograft assays were applied to explore the biological function of FAM111B in ESCA. Western blot, RT-qPCR, and RNA-seq analyses were applied to study the FAM111B/GSDMA axis in the progression of ESCA cells. CCK-8 and xenograft assays were used to study the role of the FAM111B/GSDMA axis in determining the sensitivity of ESCA to cisplatin.

Results: Our results demonstrated that FAM111B is highly expressed in ESCA tissues compared to normal tissues. We showed that FAM111B promotes the progression of ESCC cells by binding to GSDMA and that the trypsin protease domain is essential for the activity of FAM111B. Furthermore, we showed that the FAM111B/GSDMA axis regulates cisplatin sensitivity in ESCA.

Conclusions: Overall, we identified a novel FAM111B/GSDMA axis regulating ESCA tumorigenesis and chemosensitivity, at least in ESCC cells.