PAK1 inhibition suppresses the proliferation, migration and invasion of glioma cells



This study aims to explore the roles and mechanisms of PAK1 in glioma.



p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1) is abnormally expressed in glioma; however, its roles and mechanisms in glioma remain unclear.



To explore the effects of PAK1 inhibition on the proliferation, migration and invasion of glioma cells.



Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8), 5‐ethynyl‐20‐deoxyuridine (EdU) incorporation and colony formation assays were performed to evaluate the effects of PAK1 inhibition on the proliferation of glioma cells. Flow cytometry was used to examine the cell cycle distribution and apoptosis rate of the glioma cells. Wound healing and Transwell assays were performed to investigate the effects of PAK1 inhibition on glioma cell migration and invasion. The orthotopic xenograft glioma model was used to probe the effect of PAK1 silencing on glioma tumor formation.



PAK1 inhibition arrested cells at the G1 phase, and induced apoptosis of glioma cells. Moreover, knockdown of PAK1 decreased the protein expression levels of MDM2, p38, p-p38, CyclinD1, CDK4, Bcl-2, MMP2, MMP9 and cofilin, but increased the protein levels of p53, Bax, p21 and cleaved caspase-3. Finally, a xenograft glioma model confirmed that silencing of PAK1 repressed U87 cell transplantation tumor formation.



This study showed that PAK1 inhibition impedes the proliferation, migration and invasion of glioma cells.



PAK1 may serve as a novel target for glioma therapy.
