Interleukin 7 receptor activates PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway via downregulation of Beclin‐1 in lung cancer

Interleukin‐7(IL‐7) can regulate proliferation and apoptosis of cell and also regulate tumor lymphangiogenesis, but whether it regulating autophagy of tumor cells is not well known. We study the relationship between IL‐7 and some autophagy‐related markers, Beclin 1 and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and the mechanism of IL‐7 in regulating autophagy of human lung cancer cells. We detected expression of Beclin 1 and mTOR in lung cancer cells and their impact on the prognosis of lung cancer patients. Using Western blot and Reverse Transcription PCR, we found that IL‐7 activates PI3 K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway by downregulated the expression of Beclin 1 in lung cancer cell lines. In addition, the expressions of Beclin 1 and mTOR were well correlated with clinical stages and survival of human non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. IL‐7R, mTOR, and tumor stage were the independent prognosticators in lung cancer. Taken together, our results provided evidence that IL‐7 activates PI3 K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway via Beclin 1 to regulate autophagy in lung cancer cells.