Protocadherin-10 acts as a tumor suppressor gene, and is frequently downregulated by promoter methylation in pancreatic cancer cells.

Protocadherin-10 (PCDH10), a member of non clustered protocadherin family which plays important roles in calcium-dependent cell-cell signal transduction and adhesion. PCDH10 functions as a tumor suppressor gene and its expression is downregulated by promoter methylation in many malignances. In the present study, we explored PCDH10 expression and promoter methylation status, and its biological effects in pancreatic cancer cells, and furthermore, we explored the mechanism of PCDH10 preliminary in pancreatic cancer cells. The mRNA level of PCDH10 was detected by semi-quantitative reverse transcription PCR and promoter methylation status examined by methylation-specific PCR in the pancreatic cancer cells (Capan-1, Panc-1, AsPC-1 and BxPC-3) as well as the human normal pancreatic ductal epithelial cells HPDE6-C7 which was used as a control. The human pancreatic cells were transfected with plasmid pcDNA3.1-PCDH10 or pcDNA3.1 by Lipofectamine 2000. The biological function of PCDH10 in pancreatic cancer cells was determined by CCK-8 assay, colony formation assay, flow cytometry, Transwell invasion assay and wound healing assay. The levels of apoptosis related proteins were examined by western blotting. PCDH10 expression was obviously downregulated in the pancreatic cancer cells (Capan-1, Panc-1, BxPC-3) compared to the normal pancreatic ductal epithelial cells. PCDH10 promoter methylation was observed in the two pancreatic cancer cells Capan-1 and BxPC-3,and the expression of PCDH10 could be restored after treating with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine and trichostatin A in the two cell types. Overexpression of PCDH10 can inhibit the proliferation, migration, invasion ability of pancreatic cancer cells and induce apoptosis. Ectopic expression of PCDH10 could increase the levels of PARP, caspase-3, caspase-9 and decrease the level of bcl-2, AKT and p-AKT. PCDH10 acts as a tumor suppressor gene, and is frequently down-regulated by promoter methylation in pancreatic cancer cells. PCDH10 may induce cancer cell apoptosis via the AKT pathway.