Effects of EPO Gene on Growth and Apoptosis of Lung Adenocarcinoma Cell Line A549

Background and objective Published data on the association between erythropoietin (EPO) and cancer cell are inconclusive. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of erythropoietin (EPO) on the growth and survival of lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549. Methods The recombinant plasmid pcDNA3.1(-)-hEPO was constructed and transfected into A549 cells by liposome protoco1. The Levels of EPO in culture supernatant were detected by ELISA. Effects of EPO gene on growth and survival of the transfected cells were evaluated by MTT assay and flow cytometry (FCM ). Levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were also evaluated by ELISA. Results The recombinant eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA3.1(-)-hEPO was successfully constructed. The growth of cells in hEPO transfected cells was significantly inhibited after transfection (P < 0.01). More cells were blocked in S phase in hEPO transfected group compared with control group (P < 0.05), and the apoptotic rate were also significantly higher than those of their controls (P < 0.01). Levels of VEGF in hEPO transfected cells were significantly lower than controls (P < 0.01). Conclusion Exogenous EPO gene expression in A549 cells can induce cell growth inhibition and apoptosis of A549 cells, and expression of VEGF can also be inhibited.