Poster Sessions

CANCER-8

Rong Jia

R. Jia, C.L. Li, P. McCoy, C.X. Deng, Z.M. Zheng

SRp20 in Cancer Cells Plays a Central Role in Tumor Induction and Maintenance by Affecting RNA Splicing and Transcription of Genes for Cell Growth

Alternative splicing events have become an important focus in molecular and clinical oncology. An increased splicing factor SRp20 in multiple types of cancer promotes the induction and maintenance of tumor growth and renders immortal rodent fibroblasts tumorigenic in nude mice. Tumor cells with SRp20 knockdown show a drastically altered RNA splicing and transcription of genes for cell growth, resulting in cell arrest at G2, decreased expression of the oncogene ILF3 and the transcriptional coactivator EP300, and increased expression of tumor suppressor genes ERRFI1 and ANXA1. Tumor cells with decreased ILF3 or ectopic expression of aberrant splice isoforms exhibit growth retardation. This study indicate that increased SRp20 expression in tumor cells is a critical step for tumor initiation, progression, and maintenance.