The impact of SiRNA-induced silencing of CD147 on the expression of survivin in HepG2 cells

Objective To explore the possible association of CD147 expression with survivin in HepG2 cells. Methods The reverse repeat sequences of CD147 gene were designed and synthesized. CD147 was then silenced using SiRNA transient transfection. The changes in the expressions of CD147,survivin,and caspase-3 were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot,and the apoptosis of HepG2 cells was measured by FACS. Results SiRNA sequences 1 and 2 effectively silenced CD147 expression in HepG2 (P 0.05),with a decrease in the expression levels of survivin mRNA and proteins (P 0.05),but an increase in both caspase-3 mRNA expression and active caspase-3 proteins (P 0.05). The percentage of apoptotic HepG2 cells was elevated,and the early apoptosis was the most obvious (P 0.05). Conclusions The silencing of CD147 gene can downregulate the expression of survivin,resulting in an increase in the apoptosis of HepG2. CD147 and survivin may modulate each other; the exact mechanism,however,needs further studies.