Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common disease worldwide and the second most common cause of cancer-related death. ADORA2A has been shown to be highly expressed in many human malignancies. Here, researchers identified ADORA2A through RNA sequencing analysis as playing a significant role in CRC prognosis. Compared to the SW480 cell line, ADORA2A expression is relatively high in the SW620 and HCT116 cell lines. In both SW620 and HCT116 cell lines, ADORA2A knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, while ADORA2A overexpression had the opposite effect. Furthermore, ADORA2A expression affected the expression of apoptosis-related proteins (including Bcl-2, Bax, cleaved caspase-3, and cleaved caspase-9) and reduced apoptosis. This process may involve the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. ADORA2A promotes colorectal cancer progression and inhibits apoptosis through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. It may be helpful for the management and treatment of colorectal cancer.
The researchers analyzed colorectal cancer cell lines (CRC) by flow cytometry to investigate whether ADORA2A is involved in apoptosis. Compared with NC cells, the apoptosis rate of ADORA2A-knockdown SW620 and HCT116 cells was significantly increased (Figures 1A-B). In contrast, the apoptosis rate of ADORA2A-overexpressing SW480 cells was reduced (Figure 1C). Furthermore, the expression of apoptosis-related proteins was detected. Transfection with siRNA ADORA2A upregulated the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins (primarily Bax, cleaved caspase3, and cleaved caspase9), while the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 was downregulated. However, the opposite pattern was observed in ADORA2A-overexpressing SW480 cells. These results suggest that ADORA2A can inhibit apoptosis in colorectal cancer cells.
Figure 1. ADORA2A inhibits apoptosis of CRC cells. (Ran L, et al., 2023)