CDCA3 promotes the proliferation and migration of hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma cells by activating the Akt/mTOR pathway

Hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HSCC) is a highly invasive and fatal tumor with a poor prognosis in head and neck tumors. It is urgent to further study the molecular mechanism of HSCC progression and identify new effective therapeutic targets. Cell division cycle-related protein 3 (CDCA3) was reported overexpressed in several cancers and involved in tumor progression. However, the biological role of CDCA3 and its potential mechanism in HSCC remain undetermined. Reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression levels of CDCA3 in HSCC tissue and matched peritumoral tissue. The effects of CDCA3 on cell proliferation, invasion, and migration were explored using the Celigo image cytometry assay, MTT assay, flow cytometric analysis, cell invasion, and migration assays. The results showed that CDCA3 was upregulated in HSCC tissue and FaDu cell line. Knockdown of CDCA3 inhibited the proliferation, invasion, and migration of FaDu cells and promoted apoptosis of FaDu cells. Furthermore, knockdown of CDCA3 blocked the cell cycle in the G0/G1 phase. Mechanistically, CDCA3 may play a role in tumor progression of HSCC through the Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. In summary, these results suggest that CDCA3 serves as an oncogene in HSCC and may be used as a prognostic indicator and a potential therapeutic target for HSCC.