Prostaglandin E2 and Interleukin-1β Reduce E-cadherin Expression by Enhancing Snail Expression in Gastric Cancer Cells

Inflammation is closely related to the progression of cancer as well as tumorigenesis. Here, we investigated the effect of prostaglandin E-2 (PGE(2)) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) on E-cadherin expression in SNU719 gastric cancer cells. E-cadherin expression decreased as the dose or exposure time of PGE(2) and IL-1 beta increased, whereas Snail expression increased with dose or time of PGE(2) and IL-1 beta. E-cadherin expression reduced by PGE(2) treatment increased after the transfection of Snail siRNA. Neutralization of IL-1 beta using anti-IL-1 beta antibody blocked the expression pattern of E-cadherin and Snail occurred by IL-1 beta treatment. However, there was no synergic effect of IL-1 beta and PGE(2) on the expression pattern of E-cadherin and Snail. In conclusion, inflammatory mediators reduced E-cadherin expression by enhancing Snail expression in gastric cancer cells. Inflammation-induced transcriptional regulation of E-cadherin in gastric cancer has implications for targeted chemoprevention and therapy.