Investigating the effect of suppression of CD39 gene expression in inhibiting the growth and migration of breast cancer cell line

Abstract

Nowadays, CD39 is considered as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of various cancers. In particular, high expression levels of CD39 have been shown to play an important biological role in several different tumor types. However, the role of CD39 in breast cancer progression remains unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the role of CD39 gene expression suppression on tumorigenic processes in breast cancer cells. Methods: In this study, CD39 gene expression was suppressed in MDA-MB-231 cells using short interfering RNA (siRNA) technique. Cell viability, apoptosis, cell cycle distribution, and cell migration ability were analyzed using MTT, Annexin-V, DAPI staining, and wound healing methods, respectively. Changes in the expression of target genes were investigated using qRT-PCR test. Results: Suppression of CD39 expression significantly inhibited cell proliferation and cell migration of MDA-MB-231 cancer cells. Also, MDA-MB-231 cells were arrested in the subG1 phase of the cell cycle. In addition, CD39 silencing also increased cell apoptosis.